AFTER 27 years of political dominance, some Itsekiri political leaders in Warri North Area, Delta State, have conceded the 2023 chairmanship of the local government area to the Egbema-Ijaw for peace to reign.
However, controversy has erupted over the political horse-trading, as an Itsekiri group in the area has rejected the deal.
An Itsekiri political leader in Warri North, Mr. Godwin Ebosa, denied knowledge of the arrangement when contacted by Vanguard. Despite the contradictory positions, some Egbema-Ijaw PDP leaders, in furtherance of the agreement, submitted names of Ijaw chairmanship aspirants to a notable Itsekiri PDP leader in the area for transmission to the governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa.
The confidential arrangement ran into a storm, as the name of a popular chairmanship aspirant widely known as the consensus candidate of Egbema-Ijaw leaders, Mr. Francis Abulu, was calculated omitted from the list. The development generated fresh tension in the area, weekend, with Ijaw saying that Itsekiri should not decide their candidate for them. But another group, Warri North Unity Forum in a statement by the chairman, Mr. Kofi Esemighan, and others, which confirmed the political deal, urged Itsekiri leaders to allow Egbema-Ijaw people to pick their consensus candidate and not foist a crony on them.
“We laud the decision of the Itsekiri people to cede the chairmanship position of Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State for the first time to the Egbema- Ijaw on March 6, 2021, local government polls in the state, but kick against an alleged plot to handpick a particular Ijaw aspirant for the chairmanship position.” “We commend the chairman of Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, Chief Michael Diden and other Itsekiri leaders for conceding the chairmanship position of Warri North Local government area to the Egbema- Ijaw after 27 years of creation, but we advise those plotting to handpick a particular Ijaw aspirant for the chairmanship position to have a rethink.
“We want to implore those elements plotting to handpick a particular Ijaw aspirant for the Warri North chairmanship position to listen to wise counsel in the consensus agreement of Egbema Leaders around the candidacy of Mr. Francis Bekesuode Abulu, a Special Assistant on Politics to the Governor for the chairmanship position.