THE Agbarha Warri League (AWL) has dismissed allegations made by the Odua Nationalist Coalition, a Pan-Yoruba group, against Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori.
The group had accused the governor of sponsoring the installation of Urhobo traditional rulers in Warri and conspiring with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against the Itsekiri people in the ongoing delineation of electoral wards in Warri Federal Constituency.
In a statement signed by President and Secretary of the Agbarha Warri League, Joseph Ugbejevun and Edirin Okere, respectively, the association said: “Ordinarily, we would not have debased ourselves to reply to the unwarranted and inconsequential outbursts but when people peddle stories of ignorance that are not corrected, the undiscerning public may swallow it as truth.”
The league emphasized that the Governor was wrongly accused, stating: “The outburst was an act of ignorance, for the Kingship constitution of Urhobos of Warri – Agbarha Warri and Okere Warri Kingdoms were gazetted by the Military Administrator of retired Navy Captain Walter Feghabo over 24 years ago.”
The statement further noted: “It should be known that during the infamous Warri ethnic crisis, the three Warri Indigenous ethnic groups were given equal opportunities to defend the ownership claim of their areas of Warri through judicial panels of inquiry.
“We strongly believe that the white paper would reveal the true owners of Warri metropolis going by the presentation of documents and facts.”
The league also clarified that the ongoing delineation of electoral wards in Warri Federal Constituency complied with a Supreme Court judgment of 2022 and was not a ploy to short-change the Itsekiri people.
“We urge President Tinubu, Governor Oborevwori, and indeed the general public to ignore the outburst of the so-called Odua Nationalists Coalition and that they should be seen as those trying to fan the embers of discord in Warri. We are ever prepared to defend and prove the ownership claim of our area of Warri with historical facts and documents,” it added.
