Prince Collins Eselemo, a sports guru and House of Representatives’ candidate of New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) for Patani/Bomadi Federal Constituency in the 2023 general election in Delta State, is the eldest son of the quintessential Warri tycoon, Pa Wilson Merlin Eselemo. Prince Eselemo loves to identify himself as his ‘father’s spiritual and physical representative on our planet earth’. In this interview, he speaks with EBENEZER ADUROKIYA on the claims by Chief Rita Lori-Ogbebor of Itsekiri, Mr Victor Okumagba of Urhobo and Zik Gbemre of Urhobo over the ownership of Warri Urban.
THERE is a verbal altercation over the ownership of Warri Urban in both the electronic and print media, with Chief Rita Lori-Ogbebor (Itsekiri), Mr Victor Okumagba (Urhobo) and Zik Gbemre (Urhobo) making claims and counter claims. As a Warri boy, what is your opinion on this issue?
First and foremost, without prejudice to the Land Use Decree that gave all land rights to the government of the state, which of course means that all land rights are currently under the custody and authority of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State, one can possess an exclusive right to a land in the urban areas with the seal of the Delta State government, assented to by the governor of the state. That is the Land Use Decree.
I would also want you to know that before the Land Use Decree, what was the status of Warri townership? I will tell you that the traditional owners were predominantly the Ogbe-Ijohs as far as the Warri township is concerned, most especially before the arrival of the colonial masters. The Aborigines of Warri come from all the tribes, they come from the Urhobos, the Itsekiris and the Ijaws and that is why you see the major streets define and identify these three tribes.
Now, the geographical expression of Warri township as a cosmopolitan metropolis is the old stretch of Cemetery Road, the old stretch of Market Road, the old stretch of Lower and Upper Erejuwa down to Okere road, then you come back to the Okere Bridge. Under the bridge, you take it through the stream that gave a natural demarcation that comes out at the Warri River by the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA. That is the main Warri township.
The streets hitherto are, I want to start by my father’s street, Eselemo Street; Skin Road; McIver; Church Road; College Road; Egbe Street; Kpesu Street; Victory Avenue; Ijaw Street; Urhobo Road; Itsekiri Street; Bowen Avenue; Okere Road; Daudu Street; Wiliki Street; Cemetery Road; Ometta; Giniwa; Robert Road and to mention but a few. Taking into consideration the likes of Benin City as to making proper reference to Warri metropolitan city, Robert Road is supposed to be a boundary road and boundary means a demarcation between two places.
Now, Warri township was demarcated and it was characterized by the true Aborigines and the Europeans. Leases were given out, issued as European and non-European leases. The non-European lease is where the local people like my grand uncle, Pa Agidi of Burutu street, the Rewanes of Burutu street, the Akins of Urhobo road, the Eselemos of Eselemo street, the Oteris of Kpesu street, the Afejukus of Ijaw street which is Victory Avenue, the Kpesus of Kpesu street, the Akiris of Daudu, to mention but a few, stay.
To my real amazement, the champions of this main thesis called Warri Urban ownership have no property in this geographical location I have just defined; you cannot see their property there. All they do is to annex or prefix their domains with Warri. The point of the Urhobo advocates here is that, a majority of the satellite communities then have been assimilated into Warri Urban and most of them are Urhobo communities, hence, the claim of ownership of the Warri Urban…
(Cuts in) The word ownership connotes what?
Ownership means the act of having or controlling property that belongs to you, either by purchase through legal means or by inheritance according to law, taking into consideration our culture and traditions as the case may be. That being said, the name Warri and its meaning have no place in either the Urhobo or Itsekiri languages.
Again, the two groups have not been able to define the geographical expression of Warri township as a cosmopolitan metropolis. This expression, as confirmed by my grandfather and his like, divided Warri as a city into two classified habitats, i.e. The European settlement and the non-European settlement. Warri is a commercial hub designed by our colonial masters. Warri Aboriginal, as a township, was called Alders Town named after R. Alders. The non-European settlement is predominantly Ogbe-Ijoh Clan land.
You claim ownership because most of the satellite communities have been part of Warri; is that how you claim ownership? You can lay claim to your enclave and not Warri township. Okere-Urhobo or Okere-Warri or whatever you call it is not Warri township and that place became theirs in the 1970s through the case, Idudu vs Ikogbadu, Oki and Okumagba. If Okumagba won that case, Idudu was not representing Prince Collins Eselemo, Idudu was not representing John James. That was a case between Okumagba and the Idudus and it was an in-house tussle. Idudu was their cousin.
Let’s come down to the case between Ometta vs Olu of Warri in 1925, where the Itsekiris won. That judgement as well has nothing to do with Prince Collins Eselemo. So, when you say you own Warri, prove that you own it either legally or traditionally. Just like the Eselemo Street, does it mean that my father owns it, now that all lands belong to the state?
I’m sick and tired of hearing someone saying he or she owns Warri. Warri township has nothing to do with Udu, Effurun, Ogborikoko and others. I want Chief Rita Lori-Ogbebor and Victor Okumagba to tell me the meaning of Warri, the true meaning of Warri is never in their languages. They only try to prefix their domains with the name Warri. You can also say Koko-Warri.
Warri is an Ijaw word. it is originally “Warī” meaning house. The Portuguese, who first visited before our colonial masters, opted to know how the Ogbe-Ijohs called the structures they lived in. They mentioned the name to them, Warī, and whose tongue corrupted it to Warri.
What are your final thoughts?
I want peace to reign supreme in Warri, the relative peace we’re enjoying right now was made possible by the efforts of the Warri National Congress (WNC), of which I am the president-general. My point here is that the like of Chief Lori-Ogbebor, Okumagba and Zik Gbemre should not take us back to the era of crisis through their unnecessary claims and counter-claims over the ownership of Warri Urban. The path these people are treading currently is tantamount to retardation of peace, unity and growth in Warri and I, Prince Collins Eselemo, will lead the Ijaws, Urhobos and Itsekiris to hold them responsible for any unwarranted disorder in Warri City. We will apprehend and hand them over to the government. The WNC has also resolved to identify and honour those illustrious sons and daughters of Urhobo, Itsekiri and Ijaw who have come back to invest in Warri township just like our fathers and grandfathers did, such as Pa Agidi and Pa Eselemo. The WNC has established a position to honour such young entrepreneurs with awards of excellence on the 24th anniversary of the organization.
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