OLU OF WARRI TITLE: Indigenous Ijaws And Urhobos Writes Open Letter To Tinubu, INEC, International Communities, Demands For Correction Of Title Of Olu Of Warri To Olu Of Itsekiri -

By Uche Alvin

OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT BOLA AHMED TINUBU GCFR, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, INEC, AND THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

RE: THE URGENT NEED TO CORRECT THE HISTORICAL MISNOMER CALLED “OLU OF WARRI” AND RESTORE DIGNITY TO THE INDIGENOUS IJAW AND URHOBO PEOPLES OF WARRI

Your Excellency,
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR,
Members of the Federal Executive Council,
The National Assembly,
Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),
National Security Adviser,
International Human Rights and Democratic Stakeholders,
And all lovers of truth, justice and peaceful coexistence.

With utmost respect and a deep commitment to truth, we, the indigenous peoples of Warri, the Ijaws and Urhobos, write this solemn appeal with a large heart of freedom and a historical burden that must no longer be ignored. This is not a letter of resentment, but a call to correct a colonial-era and post-independence error that has caused continuous division, marginalization and distortion of historical identity in the Warri region.

It is time to confront the truth. The title “Olu of Warri” is a misrepresentation of both geography and demography. It is a political title, not a traditional reality, crafted under the influence of the colonial administrators and later affirmed by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo during the Western Regional era, without consultation or consent of the Ijaw and Urhobo peoples. It has since been weaponized as a tool of cultural supremacy, historical falsehood and electoral manipulation.

The Olu of Warri is not and has never been a sovereign over the entire Warri region. He is the traditional ruler of the Itsekiri ethnic nationality alone, a small but respected ethnic group that we, the Ijaw and Urhobo, welcomed into our midst centuries ago. But hospitality must never be mistaken for subjugation.

Historically, the Ijaw and Urhobo were the first inhabitants of the Warri axis. This is clearly documented in colonial records, ethnographic studies and oral tradition. The land now called Warri was first settled by the Ijaw people, particularly along the creeks and riverbanks, with the Urhobo occupying the upland hinterlands.

Sir P. A. Talbot, in his 1926 classic The Peoples of Southern Nigeria, acknowledged the Ijaw and Urhobo presence across what is now Delta South and Delta Central long before any mention of Itsekiri rulership. He recorded that Ijaws dominated the riverine delta and were the earliest boatmen, merchants and settlers along the coast. He further noted that the Urhobo country extended down to the Warri River, long before the 15th-century migration of the Benin prince, Ginuwa.

John Hubbard, in Sobo of the Niger Delta (1938), detailed how the Agbarha Urhobos crossed the Warri River, not under Itsekiri rule, but by mutual understanding and local alliance, settling where they now call Agbassa. These settlements had no Itsekiri sovereign authority and were organized around Urhobo indigenous systems.

Early Dutch, Portuguese, and British maps of the 16th to 19th centuries refer to the territories as “Wari/Ware,” drawn from the Ijaw word “Ware,” meaning settlement or house. The colonial mispronunciation evolved into “Warri,” not from “Iwere” as the Itsekiri falsely claim. This is not merely a linguistic error; it is a deliberate hijack of cultural identity.

Sir Richard Burton in his 1863 journal Wanderings in West Africa, confirms that the Urhobo lands (Sobo country) were located directly inland from Warri, and the Itsekiris were scattered riverine groups with no evidence of centralized monarchy extending over the indigenous Ijaw and Urhobo. He observed, clearly, that Warri was a day’s paddle away from the Sobo territory, meaning the Itsekiris were never indigenous rulers of the land but fringe settlers.

Even the founding story of the Itsekiri monarchy, built on the tale of Ginuwa, tells of a Benin fugitive who fled after committing abominations, arriving at the coast and being harbored by the Ijaw people. It was the Ijaws who gave him land and a wife, allowing him to establish a small following, not a conquest, not a kingdom over others. You do not become king over your hosts.

The Olu of Warri title was institutionalized only in the 20th century, and notably in 1952, when the Western Regional Government led by Awolowo gazetted the title as Olu of Warri. This act was done without the consent or input of the Ijaw and Urhobo peoples and since then, it has been used to falsely claim overlordship over territories the Olu neither owns nor controls.

This title has caused needless conflict. It has emboldened a small group to manipulate electoral boundaries, inflate population numbers, a move that is both disrespectful and historically illegitimate. Let it be stated categorically: the Olu has no sovereign right to walk into Ijaw or Urhobo territories without the express permission of our kings.

The Itsekiri population is grossly overstated. On national television, Amaju Pinnick, a proud Itsekiri son, admitted that the Itsekiri are fewer than one million people nationwide. During the 2023 elections, when INEC deployed BVAS machines, entire Itsekiri-dominated units turned up empty. Yet, they continue to wield disproportionate political influence over a land they never owned.

The Ijaw and Urhobo people are not asking for war. We are not fighting for supremacy. We are simply calling for the restoration of truth, respect and dignity.

We are therefore calling on the Federal Government to immediately correct this long-standing political and historical injustice. The title “Olu of Warri” should be officially changed to what it rightfully is “Olu of Itsekiri.”

We also urge the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to stand strong and immediately publish the final ward delineation results for Warri Federal Constituency. This process must not be hijacked by threats, bribery or historical blackmail. Demography must dictate democracy not manipulation.

This is a watershed moment in our history. We are calling on well-meaning Nigerians, international observers, traditional rulers, civil society and human rights defenders to rise up and support the restoration of historical truth and equity in Warri.

We, the Ijaw and Urhobo peoples, stand not in bitterness but in courage.
Not in hatred, but in hope.
Not in fear, but in freedom.

Let the truth be told. Let history be corrected. Let justice be done.

Signed,
Chief Fitness Efe
Chairman

Chief Tamuno Mark
Secretary

For: Indigenous Sons and Daughters of the Ijaw and Urhobo Peoples of Warri
For Truth, Justice and Historical Redress