National Secretary of Ethiope State Creation Says Agitation Must Not Become a Political Battlefield

The push for the creation of Ethiope State must not be hijacked by political rivalries or personal disagreements, National Secretary of the Ethiope State Creation Committee, Anthony Ochuko Onyokoko, has warned.

Speaking at Isokolo in Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State, Onyokoko urged stakeholders to separate the state-creation campaign from the political contests ahead of the 2027 elections.

His comments followed recent criticism of Senator Ede Dafinone by the leadership of the Ethiope State Creation Committee. While acknowledging that stakeholders have the right to disagree with the senator’s positions, Onyokoko said such differences should not degenerate into personal attacks or partisan confrontation.

He maintained that the demand for Ethiope State is a collective aspiration of the Urhobo people and should not be used to advance the interests of any individual, political party or organisation.

Onyokoko also cautioned politicians seeking elective offices to campaign on their records, policies and programmes rather than turn the state-creation struggle into a political weapon.

He specifically defended Dafinone’s relevance to the process, noting that the senator, as the elected representative of Delta Central in the National Assembly, could still play an important legislative role in advancing the agitation.

“We may disagree without becoming enemies. We may criticise without insulting. We may correct without denigrating,” he said.

The National Secretary further appealed to the committee’s Chairman, Chief Dr Christopher Ominimini Obiuwevbi, and other stakeholders to moderate their public statements and avoid actions that could deepen divisions within the Urhobo nation.

He warned against any individual or group claiming to speak for all Urhobo people without a clear collective mandate, stressing that the agitation should accommodate traditional rulers, politicians, religious leaders, professionals, youths, women, community leaders and Urhobo people in the diaspora.

Onyokoko also urged stakeholders to learn from the divisions that accompanied the creation of Delta State in 1991, particularly disagreements over the location of the state capital.

As political activities intensify ahead of 2027, he insisted that political interests must remain separate from the campaign for Ethiope State.

“Ethiope State must never become an instrument for promoting or opposing the political ambition of any individual,” he said.

He called for dialogue and cooperation among stakeholders, stressing that the campaign needs “friends, not enemies; bridges, not divisions; dialogue, not confrontation.”*