Group condemns Itsekiri procession during Olu of Warri coronation anniversary
The Agbarha Warri League, AWL, a socio-cultural association of the Agbarha Warri people, has described the recent procession by Itsekiris in Igbudu, Warri South local government area as provocative and unnecessary.
The said procession coincided with the celebration of the 4th coronation anniversary of the Itsekiri monarch, His Majesty Ogiame Atuwatse III.
In a statement issued by its Public Relations Officer, PRO, Mr Augustine Efeisi, AWL said the such provocative processions which featured songs directed at the Warri Urhobos, as widely circulated on social media platforms, had been prohibited in Urhobo areas to prevent a recurrence of ethnic crisis.
AWL urged the Delta State government, the Federal Government, security agencies and other relevant authorities, as well as well-meaning individuals, to prevail on the Itsekiris to desist from such actions in order to avoid another ethnic crisis in Warri South.
It recalled that past coronation anniversary celebrations of Itsekiri monarchs within Urhobo communities of Warri were identified by judicial panels of inquiry as one of the underlying causes of the infamous Warri ethnic crisis.
The group further alleged that the latest procession appeared calculated to provoke fresh hostilities and undermine the recent Supreme Court ruling on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, delineation of electoral units and wards, as well as disrupt the forthcoming voter registration exercise within the Warri Federal Constituency, particularly in Warri south LGA.
Group condemns Itsekiri procession during Olu of Warri coronation anniversary
