Okpe Leaders Reaffirm Strong Ties To Urhobo Nation

BY EBI NIEKETIEN

LEADERS of the Okpe Kingdom have firm­ly rejected claims suggesting that Okpe is not part of the Urhobo ethnic nationality, de­scribing the narrative as false, divisive, and histori­cally unfounded.

In a joint statement, yesterday, the President- General of Okpe Union Worldwide, Okakuro Robert Onome; Chair­man of the 13 District Presidents-General, Har­rison Ekeleme; and Presi­dent of the Okpe Youth Congress, Comrade Moses Odiete, condemned what they termed a campaign of misinformation allegedly led by diaspora-based aca­demic, Prof. Igho Omajuwa Natufe.

The leaders argued that Okpe has long-standing historical, linguistic, cul­tural, and political ties with the Urhobo Nation. They pointed to the involvement of prominent Okpe sons in the affairs of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU), in­cluding the late Major Gen­eral Patrick Aziza, who once served as President General of the UPU, and Barr. Isaacs Itebu, the current First Vice President General.

Highlighting constitution­al and historical evidence, the leaders cited the 1945 Okpe National Constitution which affirms Okpe’s Urho­bo identity, and the signifi­cant £1,000 donation made by the late Orodje Esezi II to the UPU. They also recalled the UPU’s role in formally recognizing the Orodje as the traditional ruler of Okpe in the early 1950s.

They further noted that Orerokpe, the ancestral headquarters of Okpe King­dom, was historically the rallying point of Western Urhobo and once served as the administrative seat for the defunct Ethiope Local Government Area, which comprised several Urhobo communities.

According to the leaders, such consistent cultural and political integration with­in the Urhobo framework makes any claim of separa­tion baseless and harmful to the collective interests of the people.

They also warned that such separatist sentiments could jeopardize the politi­cal strength of the Urhobo Nation, especially now that the region is aligning with the ruling All Progres­sives Congress (APC) and supporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s ad­ministration ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The leaders urged all sons and daughters of the kingdom to ignore what they termed a “false alarm” and to uphold the unity and identity of the Urhobo Nation.