Urhobo Times

HISTORICAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC BACKGROUND OF URHOBO AND THE PREVAILING QUESTIONS ON INJUSTICE BY Adebeke Jessy Efe The Urhobo nation is sandwiched between the Itsekiri (West). The Binis (North), The Ijaws (South) and the Isokos/Ukwanis (East). Urhobo land is 50 meter above sea level with an average temperature of 27 degrees Celsius. The main rivers are the ethiope river, the Ganaga river and Warri river. Christianity Catholic, Baptist, Anglican among others form the major religious practices apart from the traditional religion. URHOBO BACKGROUND The Urhobo are people of the Northern Western Niger Delta region in Nigeria. The language is part of the Kwa-branch of Niger-Congo Language family. Sobo is used by ethnographers to refer to the Urhobo and Isokos generally. URHOBO ORIGIN The Urhobo people are descendant of one man by name “Urhobo” by the Binis and “Soubo” by the Portuguese. There are different historical account of the migration. A source traced their origin to the Sudfan/Egypt between the 7th and 2nd millennium B.C. Another source links the Urhobo to Ile Ife in about 990 A.D. While yet another source traced their migration from Benin before 1480. URHOBO NATION: SIZE AND SCOPE Population: The population of the Urhobo people is estimated at 2.2million (as at year 2000). It has a labour force of about 1,080,000 with school enrolment of about 58,745 school pupils. It is the largest ethnic group in Delta State and 5th largest tribe in Nigeria. It comprises of 22 kingdoms, state or provinces. MAJOR TOWNS/CITIES The major towns and cities in Urhobo land include Ughelli, Warri, Effurn, Sapele, Abraka, Udu, Oghara among others. AGRICULTURE/PRE-OCCUPATION The Urhobo are engaged in what could be described as primary economic activities with emphasis on the production of natural rubber, palm produce, fishing and farming as well as trading. Raffia palm grow naturally in Urhobo land. Apart from yielding palm wine, a favourite alcoholic drink in many Urhobo and Niger Delta Communties, its tough leaves were traditionally used for house roofing in days gone by before the importation of metal sheets from England and elsewhere in the 1920s, 1940s onwards. Dating back to the 1930s and 1940s, Urhobo land had large and small scale rubber plantations. Rubber trees produce white sap from which sheets of rubber are made for shipment in Europe for industrial processing. In more recent years, some rubber processing, industrial plants have also been built in Urhobo land and elsewhere in Nigeria. Urhobo land accounts for at least 87.4% or 61,200 hectares of rubber plantation in Delta State, fifty percent of arable activities. However, the local population benefit minimally from this economic activities due to the limited presence of Urhobos in major oils service companies, marginal oil fields, oil block and concessions. Oil and gas fields are scattered all over and Urhobo people contribute about 8.4% or 84million barrels of oil and approximately 83.2billion dollars annually to the Nigeria economy. Urhobo land account for at least 33% of oil in Delta State. Oil and gas is present in several towns in all the 8 Urhobo local government areas in the state. These are; Ughelli, Otorogu, Kokori, Orogun, Eghwu, Evwreni, Oghara, Ogharefe, among others. About 54years of oil and gas exploration has significantly devastated power station with an installed capacity of 600MW. But surprisingly, there is no major step down of electricity into Urhobo land after 4 decades while other power generating towns in Nigeria enjoy step-down facilities. The Lagos Egbin Thermal station fuelled by gas from Otorugu in Urhobo land. ENERGY SUPPLY BY URHOBO Urhobo land accounts for at least 28% of total electricity generated in Nigeria. Three power stations are located in Urhobo land. These are, Sapele power station with Ogorode steam turbine station with an installed capacity of 720 MW and Ogorode gas turbine with an installed capacity of 300 MW. Ughelli, Sapele also place Urhobo land in a competitive advantage position. The large population also provided a potential large market and with at least 15.4% of bank branches in south-south, Urhobo land promises to be aviable market for foreign and domestic investments. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE The presence of natural resources such as oil and gas, cash crop and food crops are some attractive incentive that place the Urhobo land in a strong competitive position if well exploited. The presence of infrastructure such as power station in Ughelli and Sapele, Airport at Usubi and nearby Benin and Asaba, the extension of railway to Aladja Steel Plant, oil refinery in Ekpan and part facilities in Warri and the rainbow bottling, Mosogar, the Sparkling Breweries, Ughelli the Beta Glass, Ughelli, the Superblue Breweries in Agbarha-Otor are a few example of industries that have become moribund in Urhobo land. The resuscitation of these factories is a challenge that the Urhobos have to take seriously if they must advance. Lack of cohesion and unity, high rate of litigation between Urhobo Kinsmen and unhealthy political competition and business rivalry amongst Urhobos, squabble with neighbours as well as high illiteracy and low quality of education also account for the problem bedeviling Urhobo land that needs to be addressed urgently. THE PREVAILING QUESTIONS ON INJUSTICE From the above exposition, one can quickly conclude that the Urhobo Nation has suffered injustice in the hands of present and past government of this country and Delta State in particular. The following questions are issues to the address as a matter of urgency. • How can the 5th largest ethnic group with abundant natural resources not able to boast of a well known minister, whether senior or junior that have served for a period of four years since the beginning of the 4th republic? • What happened that the Urhobo Nation with a said population of 2million plus as at year 2000 which is 65% of the entire population Delta State, now drastically reduced to 40% of the entire population of Delta State as at year 2006? • Was there any trace of genocidal attack in any part of Urhobo within this period of transition that resulted to this high rate of depopulation? • Can this scientific depopulation be trace to political zoning and per mutational formula? • How can the 5th largest ethnic group in Nigeria with abundant natural resources always played second fiddle in the politics of the then Bendel and the present Delta State? • Who are those behind the factionalization of UPU? • What kind of political manipulation can make the miniorities in Delta State boast of 17 local governments and the entire Urhobo Nation just 8? • Who is that political traitor that said, it will take just one person in Delta North to donate 3 billion naira, three persons in Delta South to donate the same sum of amount while it will take 350 persons in Urhobo land to donate such amount of money? What an insult? • Can any political party in Nigeria be so confident enough and give it governorship ticket to an Idoma man or woman against the Tiv in Benue State? • What is happening to the slogan “Urhobo Ovuovo”? • Who are those inflicting the Urhobo Nation with this high level of injustice, for selfish gains? WARNING Any Urhobo man or woman directly or indirectly working against the political will of the Urhobo nation in the name of zoning will be rejected at the polling units in 2019 and beyond. CLARION CALL I call on all Urhobos irrespective of their traditional, political and modernizational belief to embrace the spirit of unity in oneness and rebuke the demons of disunity and injustice. I also use this opportunity to call on all Nigerians to joint ADP as a well structure political party and the only credible alternative to the corrupt People Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Promise Cancel (APC). From The Desk of: Adebeke Jessy Efe A Socio-political Com