The Olu of Warri Issue: Two Views and a Voice of Caution(From the Archives)

National State News

The Olu of Warri: Setting the records straight
By Alfred Rewane
(Historical Notes from the archive)
Perhaps not surprisingly, among the uninformed are to be found some ITSEKIRI young Men and Women in the professions, academia, business and the public service.
Some of these young people , anxious to know the facts would, at a social occasion, call one aside and quietly ask: “Uncle, is it true that prior to 1952, the OLU was called OLU of ITSEKIRI, and it was Papa AWOLOWO, then Premier of the Old Western Region, who changed the title to OLU of WARRI?”
Among the monolithic ITSEKIRI People , education of the younger generation on their past, their customs and traditions is a continuous process of socialization.
In the past, it used to be a pleasure and indeed a duty for the Elders to play the role of Teacher and Leader in this matter. Regrettably, there have been severe constraints on the Elders playing that role arising from the events in ITSEKIRILAND since the coronation on 2nd May, 1987 of the previous Monarch, Ogiame Atuwatse ||, OLU of WARRI.
However, in deference to pressure from the younger generation who are anxious to learn more about their past in other to fully appreciate the present, and also to set the records straight on the role played by the late Chief OBAFEMI AWOLOWO in the matter of the OLU’s Title, I have decided to issue this statement for the education of our young ones and for the enlightenment of the public at large.
HISTORICAL RECORDS
It was Professor SABURI BIOBAKU, as Chairman of the YORUBA Historical Research whose “Odu” Volume 4 is substantially devoted to the ITSEKIRI, who said that the history of the WARRI Monarchy and the ITSEKIRI People is one of the best documented in NIGERIA, beginning from the great YORUBA Migrations of the 12th Century.
But the History of the WARRI Monarchy itself began when, according to JACOB EGHAREVBA, the BENIN historian, the BENIN Crown Prince, IGINUA, who later became GINUWA |, OLU of WARRI, was mandated by his Father, Oba OLUA (about 1473), the OBA of BENIN, to go and found a KINGDOM in, and Reign over , the Riverine Areas.
Hence the OLU is called, “OGIAME”, which in EDO means “the King who reigns over Riversland”. GINUWA | founded the WARRI KINGDOM in 1480.
Thanks to the impeccable records kept by the early European Explorers, Missionaries and Traders who came to West Africa and interacted with the People , including the OLU and the ITSEKIRI People . It has long been recognized and acknowledged that the Official Title of the WARRI Monarch, from the founding of the WARRI KINGDOM in 1480, has always been OLU of WARRI.
There is abundant documentary evidence that in the 16th and 17th Centuries, the OLU had been known and referred to as the OLU of WARRI, ” WARRI ” being the KINGDOM over which the OLU Reigned.
The word “WARRI” derives from “IWERE”, the name by which the ITSEKIRI call their Homeland.
” OMIWERE” or “OMA-IWERE”, meaning the Son or Daughter of ” IWERE” Land, is the generic name for all ITSEKIRIs. IWERE is the Land and not the People .
Through the ages, the various Europeans with whom the ITSEKIRI interacted had employed varying corrupt versions of WARRI and OMIWERE, like “OYWERE” and “OERE” by the early Portuguese, “WARRI” by Captain John Adams in 1823, “WARI” in 1841 by the British Consul, John Beecroft.
John Adams and John Beecroft wrote during the reign of Olu AKENGBUWA (1795-1848), the last OLU before the “Interregnum of 1848-1936, and therefore, the immediate Predecessor of GINUWA || (1936-1949).
#The Following Historical Facts Are All In Support Of The Antiquity And Authenticity Of The Title
“OLU OF WARRI”.
i) In 1607 the King of Portugal made a decree in which reference was made to the ” King of WARRI” and to “Prince DOMINGOS”, Son of the King of WARRI.
The Prince’s ITSEKIRI Name was EYEOMASAN. His Father Olu ATORONGBOYE (6th OLU of WARRI, 1597-1625) was the First OLU to be Baptized (as SEBASTIAN).
Prince EYEOMASAN, on being Baptized, was given the Name DOM DOMINGOS. He reigned as ATUWATSE | (7th OLU of WARRI, 1625-1643).
(ii) One John Barbot, a Dutchman, writing in the 17th Century about WARRI said:
“The Capital Town OYWERE, which gives its Name to the whole Country lies in River Forcado…….”
(iii) In 1682 Father Jerome Merolla da Sorrento wrote:
“Two Capuchin Missionaries together with Father Bonaventura da Firanze having just set foot in the KINGDOM of OUUERRI (WARRI). They were very courteously received by the King”.
iv) P.A. Talbot wrote at page 320 of his book titled “The Peoples of Southern Nigeria”: 1651.
According to Urbanus Cerri, “the King of WARRI wrote to Pope INNOCENT X, asking him to send him Missionaries for his own good and that of his subjects”.
(v) A Frenchman known as Captain Landolphe writing in the 18th Century made references to the “OLU of WARRI” and said that in recognition of the trade potentials of both BENIN and WARRI KINGDOMS the King of France, LOUIS XVI by an “Arret du Conseil d’ Etat” of the 27th of May 1756 granted a charter to a Company known as the “Compagnie d’ OWHERE et de BENIN” (Company of WARRI and BENIN).
This was before and similar to the Royal Niger Company which had its charter from the British Monarch.
Following the death of Olu Akengbuwa II, who reigned as Olu of Warri, in 1848, there was an eighty-eight-year interregnum during which there were no Olus crowned in Warri. In that period, Warri or Itsekiri country was ruled by governors, who were mostly powerful merchants. Nanna’s defeat by the British Royal Navy in the War of 1894 greatly weakened these merchants and would later pave the way for the resumption of the monarchy in Warri in 1936.
In 1914, Lord Lugard created Nigeria by amalgamating the Northern and Southern protectorates. For administrative purposes, provinces were created throughout the new country. A province was named after “Warri” and this province encompassed Urhobo, Ijaw, Isoko, Ndokwa and Itsekiri lands.
During preparations to resume the Itsekiri monarchy by the coronation of Ginuwa II in 1936, official references were to the “Olu of Warri”. However, the Urhobo Progressive Union, under the leadership of Chief Mukoro Mowoe, prevailed on the colonial administration to change the title to “Olu of Itsekiri”. His argument was that the entire Urhobo Division, being part of Warri Province, could be construed to under the Olu’s domain.
Predictably, the change was denounced by notable Nigerian personalities who were not even Itsekiri.
Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, then a newspaper publisher, wrote as follows in the West African Pilot of May 14, 1940:
HIS HIGHNESS GINUWA II IS OLU OF THE ITSEKIRI-SPEAKING PEOPLE, WHO LIVE ON ITSEKIRI LAND… IF THE MATTER IS DISCUSSED IN DETAIL, IT WILL BE FOUND THAT A DEFINITE TITLE IS NECESSARY, IN WHICH CASE, THE OLU OF WARRI SEEMS TO BE THE MOST HISTORICAL AND CORRECT. WHEN WE SPEAK OF THE OBA OF LAGOS WE REFER TO THE PARAMOUNT NATIVE RULER OF LAGOS, ALTHOUGH LAGOS IS PEOPLED MAINLY BY YORUBA-SPEAKING PEOPLES AND LAGOS IS PART OF YORUBALAND. SO TOO, IN THE CASE OF HIS HIGHNESS GINUWA II, THE OLU OF WARRI IS THE PARAMOUNT NATIVE RULER OF WARRI…
It is noteworthy that, after a riot and an inquiry in 1952, Chief Obafemi Awolowo invited both Itsekiri and Urhobo delegations to present their case for and against the Itsekiri monarch being called the Olu of Warri.
The late Chief M.E.R. Okorodudu presented the Itsekiri case based on historical facts and common sense. Chief P.K. Tobiowo spoke for the Urhobos but did not dispute the historicity of the Itsekiri claim. He merely repeated Chief Mowoe’s assertion of 1936 that since Warri Province included other homelands, the title “Olu of Warri” would suggest that the Olu was titular head not only of Warri Division but also to other divisions within the province.
Chief Okorodudu then suggested that the name of the province be changed to Delta, confining “Warri” to Itsekiri homeland which had been the Olu’s domain for centuries.
BOTH THE URHOBO DELEGATE AND THE GOVERNMENT ACCEPTED THIS COMPROMISE
. This was then presented to the Western House of Assembly in Ibadan where it was debated and adopted.
THE NAME OF THE PROVINCE WAS THEREFORE CHANGED TO DELTA AND TITLE OF THE OLU OF WARRI REVERTED TO ITS ORIGINAL FORM.
Ijaws never protested against the title and Urhobos accepted the confinement of the power of the Olu to Warri – the Itsekiri homeland.

As Tsola Emiko is being crowned Olu Atuwatse  III. Congratulations Ogiame, Olu of Iwerre…But here are facts for everyone to ponder about. by EJIRO IMUERE

Fact: 1) The Olu of Iwerre was crowned in Ode Itsekiri and not in Warri city that is Popular to everyone
  2) The people of Enerhen Junction, OKERE Urhobo, Ekurede Urhobo, Igbudu, Agbassa, Ogunu, Edjeba, Okumagba avenue, McDermott, Deco road, Bazunu, did not take part in the celebration, there was nothing to show in these areas that a king was being Crowned for them
 And these areas constitute the heartbeat or live wire of Modern Warri metropolis.
3) This is because these people are not Itsekiris and have their own kings.
4) All Itsekiri kings from 1485 to 1952 are usually crowned and rule the Itsekiri people from ode Itsekiri. There was only one Palace for the Itsekiri people from 1485 to 1952.
5) That in the year 1952, the then Olu of Itsekiri Erejuwa II, decided to have another Palace, a Political Palace in WARRI CITY.
6) Consequently the Original Traditional Palace remained in Ode Itsekiri, but the new Political Palace was built in ugborin area of Warri.
7) But before he built this new Palace he squatted in a leased land given to him by the Awani family.
8). Later on to entrench his hold on this Warri city he, and his Iyasere Chief Alfred Rewane, Leased lands from the Okumagba family of Okere Urhobo to build a Town Hall for the Itsekiri people. This was the Itsekiri sociocultural cooperative building . This happened in 1961
9) It was this Leasing of a land from a non Itsekiri an Urhobo family by a King that flawed his claims as having Overlordship title to all lands in Warri city. This was used as evidence against him in the Supreme Court in 1974 and he lost
10) Now let us Understand one thing that WARRI CITY, did not exist before 1908.
11) Before 1908, the only Place known as Warri was Ode Itsekiri, or Iwerre land.
12) So any ancient document before 1908 referring to Warri is only and Only Ode Itsekiri… nothing more
13 ) But in 1908 the British wanted to build a new city for Colonial purposes and the lands of ode Itsekiri ( Original WARRI) was too small, so it deliberately extended the size to other adjoining towns and Villages.
14) Some of these Surrounding Towns and Villages are Agbassa, Okere, Igbudu, Alders Town, and Ogbe Ijoh.
15) But unfortunately the Itsekiris do not own many of these Towns and Villages as they belong to other Ethnic groups.
16) This is similar to Lagos Govt being extended to Ikeja, Oshodi, Ojota, Ajah, Epe, that have their own Obas yet they are now called Lagos.
17) Similar to Asaba capital of Delta state being extended to Okwe, Okpanam and Ibusa
18) Similar to ABUJA being extended to Gwagwalada, Kuje, Zuba, Bwari, Asokoro, Maitama, e.t.c yet being called ABUJA.
18) Unfortunately these people that the name Warri became extended to do not Practice Monarchy from Ancient times, they were a Republican people, they had no King.
19) By imposing the name Warri on their settlements caused a lot of Problems for them.
20) So in 1908, 2 Warri came into existence, the Original or Traditional Warri called Ode Itsekiri in the Riverine and the Political Warri a modern city that has form a cornubation of other Towns today.
21) The Itsekiris themselves, coined a term after this event took place for ode Itsekiri and started calling it “Big Warri”  to differentiate it from Modern Warri city.
22) So today Big Warri refers to Ode Itsekiri, a term which came into existence only after 1908.
23) In 1936 after 88 years of Interregnum the Itsekiris wanted to Crown an Olu again for themselves as the Olu of Warri.
24) But the Urhobos whose lands the Political Warri had been extended to protested claiming that the Word Warri now had a meaning beyond the Itsekiris as the identities of these Urhobos will be Subsumed as being subservient to the Olu if Warri is used that with the Present reality the most accurate Title ought to be Olu of Itsekiri.
25) The British accepted the Urhobo argument and Crowned Emiko as GINUWA II as the Olu of Itsekiri instead of the Olu of Warri.
26) But the Itsekiris never wanted that title from day one, they preferred the Title Olu of Warri because according to them the word Warri is a corruption of the word Iwerre.
27) The British tired of the numerous Petitions from the Olu gave a final solution…”we will crown you as the Olu of Iwerre, since Iwerre is your original rendering” Warri is our own creation. Warri means a different thing to us. It means a Province, a District and a city composing of many tribes and to you it is a corruption of the word Iwerre , we will not give you a corrupted version, we will give you the real version.
28) But the Itsekiris also refused that offer
29) I align with the British hence in all my writings I refer to him as the Olu of Iwerre
30) But in 1952, the British handed the regions to the locals Awolowo was Premier of Western region and for Political reasons, he changed the title from Olu of Itsekiri to Olu of Warri.
31) With this a second Palace was built in Warri city.
32) Following this a deliberate policy was put in place to Subsume the identies of the other ABORIGINAL tribes of Warri city, and this led to a lot of riots and Ethnic based Wars.
33) Various Commission of inquiries were set up to address these crisis.
34 ) To finally solve this Problem edict no 1 of 1997 was set up to create 3 additional kings for the Other tribes that constitute modern Warri city. This was done by Wing commander Walter Feghabo.
35) This Edict Gazetted 3 more kings for Warri city.
   Urhobos were give 2 of this kings and Ijaw one. The Urhobo kings are 1) Ovie of Agbarha Kingdom in Warri city. 2) Orusuen of OKERE Urhobo kingdom in WARRI CITY.
36) These kings had since be crowned and they now rule over their lands and People in Warri city.
37) Infact their territory constitute over 70% of the total land mass of Warri city.
 38). But because their Kingdoms are of a recent origin they are still not known to many in the outside world. It is left to the Urhobo people to market their own kings in Warri city, because the Urhobos form the bulk of People marketing and advertising Warri to the outside World.
39) But alternatively since the Itsekiris have rejected the Title Olu of Itsekiri in other to claim Warri city, the Urhobos of Modern WARRI CITY and Cornubation, can change the name of their Areas to another name entirely instead of trying to identify with Warri or Iwerre. If We add Agbassa, OKERE Urhobo, Ekurede Urhobo, Igbudu, Edjeba Okumagba avenue, Enerhen Junction, McDermott, Deco road, Bazunu, Ogunu to Udu road, Ovwian, Orhuwhorun, Effurun, Ekpan, Jeddo and Osubi to form a new city a mega city called for Example MOWOE CITY in honor of that founding Urhobo hero, the word Warri would go into oblivion 50 years from now on
 40) Finally I congratulate the new Olu of Iwerre land Olu Atuwatse III. Long live and Prosperity. May your reign be long, blissful, Peaceful and may it bring Prosperity to Warri city, Iwerre land and Delta state.
   God bless you and make you grow in wealth, wisdom , Wealth and Spirituality.
   Ogiame Suoooooooo

OPEN LETTER TO PROFESSOR ITSE SAGAY BY CHIEF J.E UKUEKU

December 13, 2013 at 11:31pm
Dear Professor,
RE:- “THE ITSEKIRIS, IJAWS, URHOBOS AND THE POLITICAL CONTROL OF WARRI TERRITORY” (SUNDAY VANGUARD, 11 MAY 2003 AT PAGES 45-47)
I read your article on the above. You are so highly respected by many of us – Itsekiris, Ijaws and the Urhobos, including me in a special way. I want to leave the younger Urhobos to give you an appropriate reply. Therefore, this is for your private consumption.
By the way, I was born in Warri some 78 years ago. It was in that year that Justice Webber delivered his judgement on the case of Agbassa land by Chief Ometan (for Agbasaa Urhobos) and Chief Dore Numa (for the Itsekiris).
It was an interesting issue – namely, that no court in Nigeria can deprive Agbassa people of the possession of Agbassa land or properties, provided that those properties or land are held under the overlordship of the Olu of Itsekiris, (not Olu of Warri). I make no comment. I leave that to a law professor to interprete.
The Supreme Court of Nigeria delivered another judgment in 1976 on the Warri contentious case of Okere. The Okumagba family acting on behalf of the other Urhobo families of Okere had another judgment in which the ownership of the Urhobos of Okere was ABSOLUTE, no condition.

Now, in your write up, who told you that Warri Township is the HOME LAND of the Itsekiris and not the home land of Chief Benjamin Okumagba and his other Okere brothers and even Agbassa Urhobos? Professor, I call you to a moral reasoning.

I know you as a brilliant lawyer whose father hailed from Edo State. I respect you and so I respect the Sagays. You all grew up at Sapele. Many are my very good friends. From your article, you appear to be a Warri man although your paternity is Edo State. Born and bred in Warri, I am not entitled to claim Warri as my home land. An Itsekiri man born in Bateren, Jakpa, Koko, etc. claims Warri as his homeland. My dear professor, but not a historian, you claim Warri as your home land. What about that? I leave all that to your research. I only hope that some Urhobo professors, as you are, would reply you.
What people as you and I need to do is to look for a way for a peaceful resolution of the Warri crisis. It started for no reasons. The Itsekiris and Urhobos have lived together over the years and produced children. Why are these undeserved crises between them?
I commend my people the Urhobos. They are very considerate in dealing with the Itsekiris. They have their children as Itsekiris. They do not want to do anything that will mar the relationship between Itsekiris and the Urhobos. Whatever happened, the Urhobo man respects that relationship perhaps to a fault. That is why you kept mentioning the Urhobos in your article. I think the Urhobos need a rethink when it concerns the Urhobos and the Itsekiris.
WHO ARE THESE ITSEKIRIS?
Historically, one of the most well known and respected Itsekiri leaders was Chief Dore Numa. That great Itsekiri man caused the exile of Chief Nana, facts unto history! Chief Dore Numa’s mother was Urhobo from Effurun. He meddled with treaties concerning the Urhobos of Agbassa and the European traders and colonizers, taking advantage of his maternal relationships to the Urhobos. The fact that he was Urhobo misled the Urhobos too. That influenced who believed in him (Chief Dore Numa) to give some of the evidence in court to support Dore Numa’s claim, unfortunately.
You will recall that following after was another Urhobo man. He claimed Itsekiri nationality. He was the late Chief Festus Edah Okotie-Eboh. He was born Urhobo, simple and pure. He married Chief Nana’s daughter. That made him claim Itsekiri as his ethnic group. In fact, however, his father hailed from Ewu, and his mother hailed from Orogun.

Another important Itsekiri family was that of the Rewanes. You also know that their mother was Urhobo from Agbarho. Very briefly, let me try to remind you that the eminent Itsekiris as you know them have close relationship to the Urhobo ethnic group. I want to mention some for you to consider why the Urhobos do not want any problems or war with the Itsekiris.

(a)    Late Justice F. O. Atake had his Urhobo father from Orogun.
(b)   Late Barrister Webber Egbe had his mother from Aladja – Urhobo.
(c)    Late Barrister Omoruwa had his mother from Abraka.
(d)   Justice Adjuya had his mother from Abraka.
(e)    Dr. Preston Egbe had his mother from Okpe-Urhobo.
(f)     Barrister Isaac Jemide had his mother from Okpe-Urhobo.
(g)    Chief K. B. Omatsheye had his mother from Otokuto-Urhobo.
(h)    Chief Nelson Utioyene had his mother from Okpe-Urhobo.
(i)      Deacon S. E. Aganbi had his father from Agbon Clan.
(j)     Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor had his mother from Kokori-Agbon, etc., etc.
(k)   Chief Gabriel Mabiaku, Itsekiri Prime Minister, maternally belongs to Eku, my home.
You can therefore appreciate why Urhobos are very thoughtful and considerate in dealings with the Itsekiris.
At the onset of this recent Warri crisis, a number of us showed great concern and we met. They included some eminent Itsekiris as Barrister Edodo, Barrister Isaac Jemide, and Brother Johnson Ayomike.  We also had eminent Urhobos too. We could not reach eminent Ijaws at that meeting. We discussed very frankly. One of these eminent lawyers stated amongst other points raised that Warri is the only HOME LAND of the Itsekiris. He stated that the Urhobos and Ijaws have other home lands. He referred to these other ethnic groups as settlers (just as you did). I rose to oppose that immediately. I was modest realising that I was hosting the meeting in my house.
I made it absolutely clear that the Itsekiris cannot claim Warri as their home land more than Chief Benjamin Okumagba on behalf of his family can lay claim to Warri as a home land. I said very frankly that three ethnic groups now lay claim to Warri as a home land. None of the three can lay absolute claim. Warri as it is today, has had more land cases than any other town that I know in Nigeria. Whoever wants a portion of Warri as it is today lays claim to that portion as his home land. I recounted the cases – especially Ometan versus Dore Numa, as said earlier. From that judgement delivered by Justice Webber and in a layman’s observation, and in practice, Agbassa has as much right to claim Warri as a home land.  All Itsekiris born in Bateren, Jakpa, Koko, Oghoye, etc., seem to claim Warri as a home land, even more than an Urhobo born in Agbassa. That will be a wrong assumption and dangerously so.
The Itsekiris’ claim lies on the judgment delivered in 1925 by Justice Webber. That judgement cannot justify that every Itsekiri man has a claim to the ownership of Warri. I also stated that another Urhobo group led by Okumagba family laid claim to a portion of Warri and the Olu of Warri challenged that. That matter went to court. It was resolved in 1976 by the Supreme Court of Nigeria in favour of the defendants led by Chief Daniel Okumagba. That portion of Warri is more than 1/3 (one-third) of the population of Warri today. It has a population of about 86,000 (1991 census), more than Anima North local Government area. What is very interesting is that whereas Webber’s judgment of 1925 was given on conditions, that of Okere Urhobo led by the Okumagba family was unconditional. They are immigrants from the Urhobo land of Agbarha. They settled there and the Itsekiri met them there. They leased land to the Itsekiri including eminent Itsekiris as the Rewanes and the Beghos. Resultantly, the Hussey College property was leased to them by these Okere Urhobos. In fact, the Okere-Urhobo families very graciously allowed Chief Rewane to be buried on the land, a very good and kind gesture for which the Benjamin Okumagba family must be praised and respected. How can a very good lawyer as you write what you wrote for public consumption?
Again, you referred to the Minority Bill of 1964 making the Itsekiris a minority in the Midwest. The bill was a product of Chief Festus Okotie-Eboh – an Urhobo full-blooded man, unlike the late Justice Atake, whose father was Urhobo but preferred to be regarded as a full-blooded Itsekiri man.
I was a member of the Federal Parliament of Nigeria from the Urhobo West Constituency. I rose to oppose it vehemently with applause from many. I was NPC in the Parliament having won my election with the Hoe. That was a long story. After the heated debate on the floor of the House, Alhaji Ribadu, former Minister of Defence, called both Chief Okotie-Eboh and me to order. It caused my last fate in politics, but that was it. As a law professor, if you re-appraise that bill, you know it was bogus. Any reference to it denies our intelligence to democratic practices. Itse – let’s be frank to ourselves. Let’s look back unto history.
The Itsekiris came into this area of Nigeria according to their various written and unwritten history. On one breath, they came from Benin. That claim came from a few Itsekiri writers and mainly from Benin writers. Another group in Itsekiri said they came directly from Yoruba and are of Ijebu stock. The latter made the difference in Itsekiri land. It brought the Awolowo’s government in conflict with the Urhobos mainly. The Itsekiri benefited immensely from that claim. One such great benefit was the change of Olu of Itsekiri to Olu of Warri in 1952. Many Urhobos, including me, were denied scholarship to study abroad. You know as a matter of fact that there was never Olu of Warri. You see, our problem in Warri has escalated since after the forceful institution of the Olu of Warri on the Urhobos and Ijaws, owners of the properties now known as Warri.
On our side, many of us want this unfortunate injustice buried and we live together as usual. But if learned people, as you are, whose relationship to the Itsekiri is definable, then Urhobos should start thinking twice. I hope not. It is for the benefit of us all to forget the past and crusade a new path of happy togetherness.
The other touching side of your write up on claims to Warri lands seemed to imply that the Urhobo claim is frivolous and oppressive. That is unfortunate.
You know that the Itsekiri were so very close to the early white men. They became middlemen between the interior industrious Urhobo men and women. They made the best use of that opportunity. The early white explorers, traders, etc., — the Portuguese and other Europeans – made use of these middle men. The men for fear of mosquitoes did not bring their wives along. The Itsekiri women took advantage of that. Some became their wives and had children with them, to their advantage in exploiting the Urhobo interior hard workers.
One result of that was that the average Itsekiri man found it distasteful to marry their ladies. That led them to marry industrious Urhobo women who were more docile and more dependable. That accounted for the close relationship between the Urhobos and Itsekiris that I mentioned earlier.
THE LAND EXPANSIONIST MOTIVES OF THE ITSEKIRIS
Yet another observation you ignored. The Itsekiris having come from the Ijebus and Benin had no land other than those in the rivers. They took advantage of that to effect close links with the white men. They then moved into the interior Urhobo land for their trade with whites. The Urhobos did not have the opportunity so they had to lease lands for themselves on behalf of the white traders or explorers.
Cleverly, they entered into the Urhobo lands to acquire properties. Consequently, this became resented by some of the Urhobos. Others wanted to get close to the Itsekiris to take them to the whites. That gave room to some Itsekiris acquiring Urhobo lands. In fact, you remember Itsekiris laid claims to Sapele and Oghara as their home and litigated over them after the success of the Warri case. You recall that starting from Sapele to Obiaruku [in Ukwuani], they began to claim lands and name them after themselves – Ajagolo, Ajanomi, Aja-Igun, and the others as Enume, Ajatito, Adagbrassa, Obotie, etc. Itsekiris were so clever and so proud. In that meeting, I recounted some of this as unto history. I saluted the Itsekiris.
Be that as it were, I reminded everyone of the Danish invasion of England. You know Derbyshire that is a Danish name. We are in a changing world, sometimes yielding to a new culture. The Roman Empire is dead. Even the recent British Empire is gone. Let the Itsekiris appreciate that. Yesterday is gone, yielding place to a new world. Yet we must live together and leave the past to history.
I told that meeting that claims by Itsekiris to Warri neglecting the Ijaws and Urhobos of Warri was a vexatious claim. The Ijaws and Urhobos of Warri will resist that. There is no justification for the claim. But since the claims are predicated on court judgments, we all agreed that all three concerned should respect court judgments. You also remember that the Ijaws claimed IKPESSU and the present Reservation areas. Chief Okotie-Eboh withdrew that case for settlement. That was forcibly resisted by the late Barrister Boyo. Anyway, the Judge then wrote allowing Okotie-Eboh to withdraw the case, but should never come back to the court again – what about that?
OLU’S OVERLORDSHIP
You also remember that Justice Arthur Prest resisted any attempt to place Ugbuwangue under the overlordship of the Olu of Warri. They went to court and of course Chief Arthur Prest and his Ugbuwangue people won the case. Yet another part of Okere did the same. You see, only in Agbassa case you found the overlordship matter an ongoing affair.
Dear Itse, let us come together to further a lasting settlement. It is not in Abuja. It is right here with you and me.
I love you and respect you. This is for private consumption only.
God bless.
 (Signed)
CHIEF J. E. UKUEKU, FPSN

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