{"id":4986,"date":"2025-11-06T15:29:36","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T15:29:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/11\/06\/group-writes-open-letter-to-fg-nsa-calls-for-reversion-of-olu-of-warri-title-to-olu-of-itsekiri\/"},"modified":"2025-11-06T15:29:36","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T15:29:36","slug":"group-writes-open-letter-to-fg-nsa-calls-for-reversion-of-olu-of-warri-title-to-olu-of-itsekiri","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/11\/06\/group-writes-open-letter-to-fg-nsa-calls-for-reversion-of-olu-of-warri-title-to-olu-of-itsekiri\/","title":{"rendered":"Group Writes Open Letter To FG, NSA\ufffc\ufffc, Calls For Reversion Of Olu Of Warri Title To Olu Of Itsekiri"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>By Esther David<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022The Group Charges President Tinubu To Compel INEC To Implement The Supreme Court Ordered Warri Federal Constituency Ward Delineation Report<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>OPEN LETTER FROM THE CONCERNED ELDERS OF WARRI FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER (NSA), THE GOVERNOR OF DELTA STATE<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Subject: On the urgent need to revert the title \u201cOlu of Warri\u201d to \u201cOlu of Itsekiri\u201d and to compel immediate compliance with constitutional ward\/constituency delineation orders<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Date: 6 November 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your Excellency,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We write with a controlled but burning anger, compelled by history, justice and the Constitution, to address a matter that has for decades been the root of ethnic tension, political manipulation and cultural provocation in Warri: the fraudulent and misleading adoption of the title \u201cOlu of Warri.\u201d This title has been allowed to stand for too long as though it reflects historical reality or multi-ethnic consent. It does not. It never has. It was not born out of ancestry, tradition or indigenous legitimacy but out of political forgery, colonial opportunism and a calculated attempt to impose psychological dominion over the Ijaw and Urhobo peoples who are indigenous to Warri just as the Itsekiri are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Warri is not a one-ethnic monarchy and has never been. Warri is home to distinct and sovereign kingdoms: Ogbe-Ijoh Warri Kingdom, Gbaramatu Kingdom, Egbema Kingdom, Isaba Kingdom, Okere-Urhobo Kingdom, Agbarha Kingdom and Iwere (Itsekiri) Kingdom. Each of these kingdoms has its own land, its own traditional authority, its own ancestral identity, upheld by centuries of oral, colonial, cartographic, judicial and anthropological records. At no point in history did the Itsekiri monarch exercise authority, administrative jurisdiction or land rights over these other kingdoms. The very suggestion is historically baseless, legally bankrupt and culturally provocative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is on record and unquestionable that prior to 1952, the monarch currently styled as \u201cOlu of Warri\u201d was known and recognized by the British Government, by court records, by administrative correspondence, by local tradition and by the communities themselves as Olu of Itsekiri or Olu of Iwere. The British colonial administration rejected the term \u201cOlu of Warri\u201d in the 1930s and 1940s because they understood that Warri was multi-ethnic and that such a title would be an imposition and a lie. It was only in 1952, through intense Western Regional political collusion and minority suppression dynamics, that the title was altered. That alteration was never a product of ancestral succession, it was a deliberate political device designed to assert symbolic supremacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We reject it.<br \/>We repudiate it.<br \/>We will never accept it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A city of many kingdoms cannot be renamed to serve the ego of one.<br \/>A land of several indigenous nations cannot be rewritten by decree.<br \/>No tribe has the right to claim lordship over another tribe\u2019s land, identity or history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The continued government usage of the title \u201cOlu of Warri\u201d is not a neutral act. It is a constitutional provocation, an ethnic insult and a direct violation of Section 42 of the Constitution, which prohibits ethnic dominance and discrimination. It is also a violation of Section 1(1) regarding the supremacy of the Constitution over any custom and Section 287, which demands obedience to judicial clarity in land tenure and indigenous jurisdiction matters historically established in multiple Warri land cases (Ogegede v. Dore Numa, Ometan v. Dore Numa, Privy Council Appeals, 1925\u20131934), all of which demonstrate that land ownership and traditional authority in Warri are plural, complex and never unitary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your Excellency, there can be no peace built on a lie. Peace sustained on injustice is temporary and explosive. The retention of this false title fuels agitation because it insults the dignity of entire nations who have their own kings and territories. We have never in anyway bow to a false title that has no historical identity and ancestral authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Furthermore, the deliberate delay by INEC in announcing the final ward delineation result after fieldwork has been completed and after judicial guidance has been provided, constitutes a constitutional defiance that directly threatens security, civic order and electoral legitimacy in Warri Federal Constituency. The people shall not participate in any political process grounded on struck-out, illegal, outdated and unrepresentative wards. There will be no Continuous Voter Registration under illegality. There will be no election built upon the denial of rightful political representation. The Constitution is not a suggestion; it is a command. INEC must comply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We therefore demand, without compromise, without delay and without further provocation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(1) The immediate official reversion of the title to \u201cOlu of Itsekiri (Olu of Iwere).\u201d<br \/>(2) The immediate announcement of the final ward delineation result for Warri Federal Constituency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are not requesting favors.<br \/>We are asserting constitutional rights and historical truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the Nigerian state desires peace in Warri, this is where peace begins, by ending a lie and obeying the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Signed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chief Tiemopere Joshua<br \/>(President)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chief Ebikeke T. Goodstime<br \/>(Secretary)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Concerned Elders of Warri Federal Constituency (CEWFC)<br \/>For and on behalf of peace, truth and justice in the Niger Delta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cc:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The National Assembly of Nigeria<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Attorney General of the Federation<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Delta State House of Assembly<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Esther David \u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022The Group Charges President Tinubu To Compel INEC To Implement The Supreme&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[14],"tags":[1574,1573,1067],"class_list":["post-4986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion","tag-calls-for-reversion-of-olu-of-warri-title-to-olu-of-itsekiri","tag-group-writes-open-letter-to-fg","tag-nsa"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0568-1.jpg?fit=790%2C488&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4234,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/07\/02\/breaking-coalition-of-ijaw-urhobo-group-sends-open-letter-to-president-tinubu-nsa-inec-international-communities-over-alleged-meeting-between-olu-of-itsekiri-and-first-lady-oluremi-tinubu-to-dera\/","url_meta":{"origin":4986,"position":0},"title":"BREAKING: Coalition Of Ijaw, Urhobo Group Sends Open Letter To President Tinubu, NSA, INEC, International Communities Over Alleged Meeting Between Olu Of Itsekiri And First Lady Oluremi Tinubu To Derail The Democratic Process In The Ward Delineation","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"July 2, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Esther David OPEN PROTEST LETTER TO THE PRESIDENCY, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER, INEC, THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY AND THE NIGERIAN PUBLIC RE: UNHOLY ALLIANCE TO DERAIL DEMOCRACY \u2013 REPORTS OF SECRET MEETING BETWEEN THE OLU OF WARRI AND FIRST LADY REMI TINUBU TO SABOTAGE INEC'S WARD DELINEATION PROCESS GOING ON NOW\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0460-2-1.jpg?fit=924%2C506&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0460-2-1.jpg?fit=924%2C506&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0460-2-1.jpg?fit=924%2C506&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0460-2-1.jpg?fit=924%2C506&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3609,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/06\/26\/ownership-of-warri-group-sends-open-letter-to-governor-oborevwori-calls-for-correction-of-title-of-itsekiri-monarch-from-olu-of-warri-to-olu-of-itsekiri\/","url_meta":{"origin":4986,"position":1},"title":"OWNERSHIP OF WARRI: Group Sends Open Letter To Governor Oborevwori, Calls For Correction Of Title Of Itsekiri Monarch From \u201cOlu Of Warri To Olu Of Itsekiri\u201c","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"June 26, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"\u200e By Uche Alvin OPEN LETTER TO HIS EXCELLENCY, THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR OF DELTA STATE\u200eRE: The Urgent Need to Correct the Misleading Title \u201cOlu of Warri\u201d to \u201cOlu of Itsekiri\u201d or \u201cOlu of Iwerre\u201d or \u201cOlu of Ode-Itsekiri\u201d\u200e\u200eYour Excellency,\u200eRt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori\u200eExecutive Governor of Delta State\u200eGovernment House, Asaba\u200eDelta State\u200eSir,\u200e\u200eWe write\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/img_0271-5-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C806&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/img_0271-5-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C806&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/img_0271-5-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C806&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/img_0271-5-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C806&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/img_0271-5-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C806&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4794,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/09\/10\/just-in-niger-delta-advocacy-group-writes-open-letter-to-president-tinubu-inec-nsa-over-delayed-implementation-of-warri-federal-constituency-delineation-report-calls-for-immediate-implementation\/","url_meta":{"origin":4986,"position":2},"title":"JUST IN: Niger Delta Advocacy Group Writes Open Letter To President Tinubu, INEC, NSA Over Delayed Implementation Of Warri Federal Constituency Delineation Report, Calls For Immediate Implementation","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"September 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Esther David OPEN LETTER TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND INEC BY: Defenders of Warri Federal Constituency Truth and JusticeDate: [10\/9\/2025] Warri Is Not a Kingdom, It Is a City of Kingdoms. Announce the Final Delineation Result Now! Warri is not a kingdom. It never was. It is far more\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4375,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/07\/11\/just-in-advocacy-group-writes-open-letter-to-delta-state-house-of-assembly-demands-for-amendment-of-traditional-rulers-and-chiefs-law\/","url_meta":{"origin":4986,"position":3},"title":"JUST IN: Advocacy Group Writes Open Letter To Delta State House Of Assembly, Demands For Amendment Of Traditional Rulers And Chiefs Law","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"July 11, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022\u2022As They Call For Correction Of Title Of Olu Of Warri To Olu Of Itsekiri \u200eBy Uche Alvin\u200e\u200eOPEN LETTER TO THE DELTA STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY\u200e Urgent Legislative Action Needed to Amend the Traditional Rulers Council and Chiefs Law\u200eCorrect the Misleading Title \u201cOlu of Warri\u201d to the Accurate \u201cOlu of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Opinion&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Opinion","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4786,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/09\/06\/group-calls-for-correction-of-itsekiri-monarchs-title-from-olu-of-warri-to-olu-of-itsekiri\/","url_meta":{"origin":4986,"position":4},"title":"Group Calls For Correction Of Itsekiri Monarch\u2019s Title From \u2018Olu Of Warri\u2019 To Olu Of Itsekiri","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"September 6, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Uche Alvin OPEN LETTER TO HIS EXCELLENCY, SENATOR BOLA AHMED TINUBU,GCFR,PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA. A Call for Legislative Motion on the Title of Olu of Warri In the interest of peace, unity, and justice in Delta State, I call on our elected representatives to urgently move a motion\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Opinion&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Opinion","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/opinion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_1212-1.jpg?fit=402%2C477&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4315,"url":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/07\/06\/foremost-rights-group-writes-nigerian-government-inec-says-federal-governments-continuous-recognition-of-olu-of-itsekiri-as-overlord-of-warri-must-stop\/","url_meta":{"origin":4986,"position":5},"title":"Foremost Rights Group Writes Nigerian Government, INEC, Says Federal Government\u2019s Continuous Recognition Of Olu Of Itsekiri As Overlord Of Warri Must Stop","author":"Freeborn Abraye","date":"July 6, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Uche Alvin OPEN LETTER TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA, INEC AND THE CONSCIENCE OF THE NATION RE: THE OLU OF ITSEKIRI CANNOT CONTINUE TO BEAR A FALSE TITLE Subthemes:Colonial Cartography and Ethnic Favoritism: How the British Weaponized the Olu StoolINEC and the Struggle for Electoral Justice in Warri\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0568-1.jpg?fit=790%2C488&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0568-1.jpg?fit=790%2C488&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0568-1.jpg?fit=790%2C488&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/img_0568-1.jpg?fit=790%2C488&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pfDfBE-1iq","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4986"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4986\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}