right from the commencement of campaigns for the position of the executive governor of Delta state, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori did not mince words when he promised to promote peace and security if elected governor of the state. To buttress the premium he placed on the issue, the governor captured it in his guiding work tool, the MORE (Meaningful development, Opportunities for all, Realistic reforms, and Enhanced peace and security) agenda.
Suffice it to point out that the governor has not done badly so far in his peace enhancement efforts. This is especially so, given his appointment of Chief Edwin Uzor as his Special Adviser on peace and conflict resolutions. With the way the governor’s aide gives the background history and the hitherto peace reign of peace in areas where he has intervened in their conflicts, it can only be fair to consider him as a round peg in a round hole as far as his assignment is concerned.
While the Governor marked the end of his second year in office in May this year, 2025, his Special Adviser on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution, Chief Edwin Uzor, has said the Enhanced Peace and Security component of the MORE agenda of the government of Delta state was on course and succeeding.
In May 2025, the Special Adviser revealed that the past two years of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori in office were devoted to consolidating the achievements recorded by previous administrations in peace building and breaking new grounds. He pointed out that 85 per cent of community related conflicts in the state, including the over two-decade Aladja/Ogbe-Ijoh crisis, had been successfully resolved.
Continuing further, the political appointee informed the public that the remaining 15 per cent of the cases being handled by the state government were at the verge of resolution, commending Governor Sheriff Oborevwori for his determination and encouragement in ensuring that peace reign in all the communities in the state.
Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja communities are not the only places where Chief Uzor’s capacity to resolve community conflicts has manifested. The Delta State Government has also brokered peace in areas like Okpare-Olomu Community, Ughelli South Local Government Area, thereby ending the lingering crisis fueled by leadership disputes and controversies over land sales which since 2024.
In all the places the Adviser had visited, urging people to remain at peace with one another has remained his gospel. He identifies some of the causes of conflict among communities and threat to the internal security of the state to include; greed, inordinate quest to forcefully and undemocratically manipulate and seize the instrument of governance, unholy desire by leaders to perpetuate themselves in office, marginalization in the distribution of the commonwealth of the people, high-handedness on the part of leaders, ineptitude and undue favouritism by some traditional institutions and authorities, uncontrolled acts of exuberance by youths, flagrant disrespect for the rule of law, and disregard for laid down customs and tradition of the people.
Having identified the causes of conflicts around the country, it behooves the leaders and members of the different societies in Delta state to embrace the words of an American zoologist, Katy Payne ,who once said; “Community responsibility, when it is managed well, results in peace. And peace benefits everyone. Taking care of someone or something to which you are not immediately genetically related pays you back in other dimensions, and the payback is part of your wellbeing. Compassion is useful and beneficial for all.”
The ageless axiom that points to the fact that no meaningful development can ever be realized in an atmosphere of rancour still holds true today. The reign of peace and tranquility in Delta state are largely responsible for the influx of non-indigenes to the area for both permanent and temporary residence and establishing businesses in the place.
Ensuring peaceful coexistence requires discipline. And this must start from the feet of the leaders at all levels. The chiefs in the palaces of the traditional rulers must resolve to be of good conduct in the discharge of their duties. Those who fail to adhere to traditional institutions’ inclination towards peace must be chased out of the college of chiefs in the communities.
In the light of this, the examples of traditional rulers such as the Asagba of Asaba, the Obi of Owa, the Dein of Agbor, the Oroje of Okpe, the Olu of Warri and others that regularly take interest in participating in the discourse of issues relating to peace and security in the state deserve replication by other similar leaders.
Of special note is the recent decision of the Asagba of Asaba, Obi Professor Epiphany Azinge, SAN to set up a community anti-drug trafficking taskforce which has so far sent warning signals that have been sending drug barons packing from the ancient town. The legal luminary-turned king also followed up his fight against the criminals with a threat to derobe any chief in his domain found to be aiding and abating the drug cartel in Asaba.
The anti-drug stand of the Asagba can only be fully understood and better appreciated when it is realized that a great majority of the activities leading to communal crisis and the likes in the country are aided by the consumption of hard drugs. Emulating the example of the Asagba by other peace and security-loving monarchs will not be a bad idea.
Additionally, the governments at all levels must continue to engage their people in intentional seminars, workshops and town-hall meetings that offer enduring knowledge transfers that guarantee sustainable life of progress without disrupting the different noble activities in the societies.
More so, the scope of civil or social studies at the early stages of education should be expanded to include national ethics and values as practiced in advanced climes.
Despite the accomplishments of Chief Edwin Uzor in his assigned duties of ensuring harmonious co-existence of communities in Delta state, the import of the common saying that ‘the reward for hard work is more work’ must continue to be put in view in his peace building engagements.
Therefore, there is need for the office responsible for peace building and conflict resolution to be legally backed up by enabling laws that will guarantee its existence beyond the tenure of Chief Uzor as head and Governor Oborevwori as governor of the state.
Given the increasing cases of Fulani herders’ conflict with the different communities where they carry out their cattle grazing activities, the Delta state government should widen the scope of Uzor’s job to include liaison with non-indigenous groups in the state such as the cattle breeders.
Engaging strangers in regular dialogues as the adviser currently does with communities in the state will, no doubts reduce the cases of unchecked behaviours of strangers in the state.
A tree, they say, cannot make a forest. For this reason, the former chairman of PDP in Delta state must be provided with the necessary tools he requires in the execution of this onerous task, especially competent professionals and other materials such as vehicles for movement, modern office equipment for accurate and enduring record keeping and monitoring of decided cases. Yet another area of clarity is the issue of permanent supervisory office to the office of peace building and conflict resolution. And due to its importance, it should be permanently domiciled in the office of the governor of the state for direct supervision by the governor.
In the peace building campaigns, the role of citizens is necessary in arriving at positive results. Everyone must bear a spark of responsibility to bring the kind of world order that we all need.
In our hearts, we must be guided by the words of Nigeria-born civil rights and democracy activist and founder of the Kudirat Initiative for Democracy, Hafsat Abiola who opined many years ago that; “Peace comes from being able to contribute the best that we have, and all that we are, toward creating a world that supports everyone. But it is also securing the space for others to contribute the best that they have and all that they are”.
