OLARA-AJA IN SAPELE: ANOTHER ITSEKIRIS INTENTIONAL CONFRONTATION AGAINST URHOBO
-By Zik Gbemre
Itsekiri Olu and people are known for fabricating history. No historical fact that there was Olu of Warri.
There was Olu of Itsekiri that Awolowo changed to Olu of Warri in 1952 that sparked troubles in the region till date between Itsekiris and their neighbours.
Urhiapele (Sapele) land matter was concluded before the passing of Chief Mukoro Mowoe. Itsekiri has tested the waters whether it is calm.
Whenever Urhobo person is elected governor Itsekiris always want to create problems. It was obvious when James Onanefe Ibori was elected governor in 1999 and almost through his tenure there was ethnic crises in Warri city.
Now Sheriff Oborevwori is elected, Itsekiri Olu and people are drumming for war in Warri city and they have started in Urhiapele (Sapele) with the supposed Olara-Aja traditional title.
Urhiapele (Sapele) is a major town of Okpe Kingdom of Urhobo. The supposed Olara-Aja title in Sapele is the handiwork of Olu of Itsekiri and his people to expand their territory beyond the riverine communities in Jakpa River.
I have advised the Olu and Itsekiri people to embrace the truth and honestly relocate to their Ode-Itsekiri and Riverine communities in Benin River where they belong.
Olu should tell his people to make their communities active by living in them. Their problem is that every Itsekiri person wants to live in cities.
As noted by Godwin Notoma, “Ignore at your own detriment, some 50-100 years from now, when the Olu shall claim overlordship over those areas. Let the Itsekiri do this in the Ijaw territories and see the consequences.
"We must look at the political dynamics currently at play in Delta State. The Urhoboman is very considerate when dealing with his neighbours, especially the Itsekiri, but the Itsekiris don't take cognizance of Urhobo sensibilities when dealing unkindly with us.
"We consider blood links through intermarriages, but they don't. They go ahead to do or say whatever they want to do or say to us without consideration. Shall the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom in Urhoboland make a declaration? He may not.
"The governor is an Okpe, Urhobo, his subject. While other ethnic nationalities will see this as an advantage, and take it, the Urhobo man will prefer not to rock the boat. We seem to forget so soon how the Itsekiris used their political alliance with Chief Obafemi Awolowo to change the title of the Olu of Itsekiri to the Olu of Warri.
"If the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom will not make a declaration out of politeness, and political expediency, at least a high-ranking chief of Okpe kingdom or perhaps a prominent Sapele indigene should make a public statement.
"Before Mukoro Mowoe died in 1948, it took the UPU a tough struggle to make Sapele part of the Okpe kingdom and the Urhobo nation. Prior to that, the Itsekiri claimed ownership. This struggle and the victory that followed was a high point of the UPU strength under Mukoro Mowoe and Adogbeji Salubi.
"With the present event, the Itsekiri are surreptitiously working to gain a foothold in Sapele in 2025. If this kite flies, then further attempts will be made in other Urhobo territories where the Itsekiris have resident population.
"It is good to remember that the Itsekiris have a way of renaming their host communities in their language. They even give Itsekiri names to Urhobo children born in their enclaves and call such children only by such names, until even the Urhobo parents of such children start calling their own children by the borrowed foreign names.
"For example, the Udu community, known as IKPERA, near Aladja, is now called IKPESAN by the Itsekiri and annexed to Warri South LGA. The Ijaw Community of Okerenkoko was renamed Okerenkigho by the Itsekiris until Ijaw people, as they then were, forcefully re-established the Okerenkoko/Oporoza Ijaw name.
"Urhobo must not put forward the conciliatory and weakening thoughts of inter marriages in dealing with this matter. Just 50 to 100 years from now, the evil seed that is now planted in Sapele shall have grown too big for a single motor saw to bring down.
"As time passes, even the newborn Urhobo children would have grown used to accepting the territory as an Itsekiri territory. We shouldn't allow tough battles for our children and grandchildren to fight. Would they have the boldness to wage it?"
The Olu and Itsekiri people want to make Delta state ungovernable whenever Urhobo person is elected governor by deliberately creating crises which they will refer to in the nearest future as their home communities.
They know where they belong.
The UPU is no longer what it was due to poor leadership.
Michael Egi has described the present situation in Urhoboland as, "Our enemies know what they are doing, they are not naive but very conscious of the state of affairs in urhobo land.
"They know Urhobo is down now, our almighty UPU has been reduced to a social arm of Delta politicians. To understand the betrayal of Urhobo people by the current UPU leadership, the first speech the present PG UPU, Ese Gam made was to tell Urhobos that the itsekiris are not our enemies.
"If they are not our enemies, what are they? Allies or friends. Is it that we Urhobos are currently just playing ‘possum' or really sleeping? More of our adversaries are bound to take advantage if we continue in this comatose state.
"I say it again, unequivocally, we need a replacement for UPU, an organization that would be at the forefront of fighting for Urhobo interest. Now it's Okpe, tomorrow it might be Uvwie or other Urhobo Kingdoms.
"How many people know that Sabongida Ora used to be called Eriobe by the natives until the Hausa squatters displaced the natives. Let's be proactive now."
Zik Gbemre
December 22,2025
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