By Francis Ewherido
The preamble of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU) 2024 Constitution as amended states: Whereas the indigenous people of Urhobo Nation in Delta State are desirous of protecting and promoting the interest and wellbeing of the Urhobo Nation and its people; whereas it is desirable there be a body of Urhobo people capable of interacting with the various levels of government and other socio-cultural groups within Nigeria for the promotion of cultural, socioeconomic and political development as well as ethnic and political harmony within the context of a united Nigeria…” This preamble sits well with me, although I disagree with some articles of the constitution because they are nebulous and contradictory. We shall come to that another day.
For now, I want to focus on the preamble. “The indigenous people of Urhobo Nation in Delta State are desirous of protecting and promoting the interest and wellbeing of the Urhobo Nation and its people.” Sometimes ago, I wrote an article asking, “what is the interest of the Urhobo people and who defines it?” The article was sequel to issues some people raised which I considered myopic. Then I asked if the interest of Urhobo is restricted to the geographical entity of Urhobo land. For instance, is it in the interest of Urhobos to complete the Ughelli-Asaba dual carriage way, which the government of Elder Sheriff Oborevwori has virtually completed and is currently one of the best roads in Nigeria? My answer then and now is a resounding YES, though not more than two kilometers of that road is in Urhobo land. Urhobos use that road on a daily basis to Isoko, Delta North and beyond. Many Urhobo people died on that road when it was in a bad state. Someday, we really have to define what the interest of Urhobo is.
Is it important to interface with the federal, state and local governments? Again, YES. Every UPU executive should have access to all levels of government to present Urhobo interest (odavwe r’Urhobo) to government as different from personal interests. Urhobo land is a major contributor to the wealth of Nigeria. The Urhobo Nation is a critical stakeholder in Nigeria and so it should have a say in the affairs of Nigeria. Who can competently present the Urhobo case in Abuja? Only people with capacity, vision and selfless disposition who are close to power and know the way to Aso Rock. I was in the delegation of UPU, royal fathers and other prominent Urhobos who met with former President Muhammadu Buhari during the tenure of Olorogun Moses Taiga as UPU President General. Such access and meetings are very important and should continue.
In Delta State, Urhobo is the major ethnic group. Unlike Benue, where only the Tivs produce the governor, we rotate the governorship in Delta State. It gives all Deltans a sense of belonging and I have no problem with that. The same rotation occurs in Edo State. But whether the governor is from Delta Central (Urhobo) or other senatorial districts, the Urhobos must not be shortchanged. We must always get our due. That is the situation with the Binis, the major ethnic group, in Edo State. We should blame ourselves not our stars if we were shortchanged when an Urhobo man was not a governor. That should be one of the things a UPU executive should pay attention to.
This brings me to the issue of endorsement of candidates before national elections by the UPU executive. The UPU is a sociocultural body and has no business endorsing candidates for national elections. UPU has endorsed presidential and governorship candidates in the past who lost their elections. I felt very awkward when we went to see Buhari. UPU had endorsed Dr. Goodluck Jonathan prior to the 2015 presidential election. It even got more interesting when two Urhobos contested the Delta State governorship and UPU endorsed one in the past. A father shouldn’t have favourites among his children and even if he chose to, it shouldn’t be so brazen. UPU must remain a sociocultural body for all Urhobos.
Still on the preamble, “ethnic and political harmony,” especially with our immediate neighbours is very important. The Urhobos and the Isokos, Itsekiris and the Ijaws have intermarried. Now, many Urhobo families have Itsekiri, Isoko and Ijaw blood. Peaceful co-existence is very important, but the UPU should ensure that the relationship is based on fairness, equality, justice and mutual respect. I don’t consider myself superior to anybody and it is an insult for anybody to consider himself superior to me due to ethnic considerations. It’s unacceptable.
Having looked at the preamble, I want to focus on the prospective aspirants who I support to lead the UPU. I will revisit the UPU constitution in a follow-up article. Many Urhobo sons and daughters have the capacity to lead or be in the executive of the UPU, but only one person can occupy a position at a time. As the election gets closer, I do not want to sit on the fence. I have always supported and worked for candidates. For the 2025 UPU elections, these are the people I am supporting to lead the UPU and move the Urhobo nation forward: President-General, Chief Simeon Ohwofa; first PG, Barr. Mike Igini; Second PG, Mr. Abraham Ogbodo; General Secretary, Mr. Patrick Origho; Asst. General Secretary, Dr. Benson Uwheru; Publicity Secretary, Prof. Sunny Awhefeada; Treasurer, Prof. Dicta Ogisi; Financial Secretary, Prof. Rose Aziza; Legal Adviser, Dr. Brown Umukoro; Assistant Publicity Secretary, Chief Veronica Ajuebon and Auditor, Mr. Matthew Ogagavworia. This team looks like the current Arsenal team to me. There’s no weak link.
Any team that wants to win trophies shouldn’t have weak links. The names are familiar to every follower of Urhobo affairs. They are people with pedigree and come highly recommended, but let me just briefly talk about the ones I have personally worked with. Chief Simeon Ohwofa is a former president and currently chairman, board of trustees of Urhobo Social Club, Lagos (USCL). I worked directly with him and we achieved many milestones in USCL. USCL has a big plot of land in Abijo GRA, Lagos, which was acquired when he was president. He was worried that USCL might lose the land before members finished redeeming their pledges. Intelligent, simple, humble, unassuming, but very result-oriented, he quietly paid the N35m and USCL acquired the land. He paid from his pocket. USCL refunded the money to him after members finished redeeming their pledges. The land is now worth between N200m and N300m now if not more. That is the stuff UPU PGs should be made of. It is either you have the financial capacity or you know those who have the financial capacity you can get the funds from. Chief Ohwofa is a businessman with interests in agriculture, food and banking. He is a core investor and director of DavoDani Microfinance Bank, wholly owned by Urhobo patriots.
Ohwofa is not a stranger in UPU. He was in the Council of Representatives, UPU Committee to restore Urhobo College, Effurun; a delegate in previous UPU elections, recipient of UPU merit award and member, UPU election committee that brought the Ese Gam Executive to power.
Besides UPU, Chief Ohwofa is a trustee, secretary board of trustees and national co-ordinator of Urhobo Historical Society (UHS). He is an ochuko of Urhobos in Lagos and Delta, an Uwheru community leader and benefactor of many Uwheru sons and daughters. He runs a scholarship scheme in Uwheru. In summary, Ohwofa is a colossus in many respects. I need a whole article if not a book to adequately talk about him.The next person I have directly worked with is Mr. Abraham Ogbodo. Our relationship spans over two decades. Urhobo nationalism runs in his veins. We used to meet regularly in Lagos to brainstorm. The Urhobo nation took 90 per cent of the time. When he told me of his plans to resign as the editor of The Guardian Newspaper and relocate to Urhobo land, I thought he was insane. Then he asked me, “if we all stay back in Lagos, who will develop Urhobo land for us?” True to his words he relocated to Urhobo land, although he still has a personal house in Lagos. He is a past president of Atamu Club, Lagos. He single-handedly built a primary school in Oghara, Agbarha-Otor Kingdom. He is a community leader.
Ogbodo is also an adopted son of Ewu Kingdom. He taught in Ewu in the early 80s. Recently, the Delta State Governor, Elder Oborevwori, made him the chairman of the Okuama IDP Camp Committee. His management of the camp was exemplary. He used the grant from the government judiciously and mobilised more funds, food and relief items from individuals and organisations. He also used personal resources to care for them. Okuama people will never forget him. Recently, he went to Okuama to see “his people.” The reception was wonderful. As he did when they were in the IDP camp, he took bread from his bakery to them which they shared with joy. Ogbodo is an immense asset to the Urhobo Nation.
The other person I have directly worked with is Dr. Benson Uwheru. I had been hearing about Benson before I met him. When we worked together, I now knew why he was so popular though young, especially among youths, some of whom he got jobs for. Benson is a jewel, a great asset. He makes difficult assignments become ABCD. He was the secretary of the fundraising committee that raised over N400m to start a microfinance bank to provide loans for Urhobo Ighele and ewheya (Youths and women). Benson Uwheru is a secretariat personified, not just secretary. He is efficient and a delight to work with. He was awarded an honorary doctorate degree for his enormous contribution to society. In addition, he is a doctorate degree holder.
I was the vice chairman of the committee. Abraham Ogbodo incidentally was the chairman. Urhobo sons and daughters supported us massively. Unfortunately, the Central Bank refused to give us an operating licence. CBN delayed it, but the dream can’t be truncated because the subscribers are resolute. When I see outsiders weeping louder than the bereaved, I laugh. You want to attend an AGM and know what’s going on in a company when you are not a shareholder. Where were you when we traversed the world physically and via mass media asking Urhobo sons and daughters to subscribe to Okugbe MFB? The subscribers know their investment is safe.
The last but certainly not the least person I have worked with is Prof Sunny Awhefeada. I got to know him through my late brother, Sen. Akpor Pius Ewherido. He was fond of prof. We got to meet after my brother died. Since then, we have remained close. When I presented my book, “Life Lessons from Mudipapa,” he was the book reviewer. He is always in the forefront of matters concerning Urhobo people culture and the youths generally from time. Those who don’t know him personally will think he’s much older than he is because he’s been in the public domain for ages.
There are other professors and titans in the team that I am supporting. I am supporting a formidable bunch. I have not personally interacted with Prof. Rose Aziza, but my late brother spoke highly of her. She was the main driver of his efforts to deepen the study and knowledge of the Urhobo language. When he spoke highly of someone in our private discussions, I took it and still take it seriously.
In summary, these great Urhobo sons and daughters excite me individually and as a combination, and I will work for them with utmost vigour. In a contest like this, we have the freedom to support any candidate of our choice, but for me, the interest of the Urhobo Nation should supersede personal interest. The negative undercurrents that I’m already seeing will backfire. Focus on your candidates and issues germane to the Urhobo Nation. PERIOD.
Francis Ewherido is from Ewu Kingdom and an Urhobo patriot
