Rita Lori Ogbebor raises alarm over ‘looming genocide’ against Itsekiri, renews calls for creation of Warri State

Prominent Itsekiri leader, businesswoman, hotelier and philanthropist, Mrs Rita Lori Ogbebor, on Friday, raised the alarm over what she described as an “imminent genocide” against the Itsekiri ethnic nationality in Delta State, warning that the situation could escalate into a full-scale conflict if the Federal Government does not take urgent action.
Addressing journalists at a press conference, the Warri Igba accused politicians of stoking ethnic tensions in the oil-rich Warri axis for selfish political and economic interests linked to control of oil resources.
According to her, the Itsekiri people are under coordinated attacks and intimidation by neighboring ethnic groups, particularly the Ijaw and Urhobo, who she said recently held separate global press conferences calling on their relatives around the world to unite against the Itsekiri.
“You might say the word genocide is harsh, but it’s true. It’s a fact,” Ogbebor said. “There is a looming genocide against the Itsekiri, and the whole world, the president of this country and Nigerians must know that the Itsekiri are being beaten up.”
She recalled the violent crisis in Warri between 1997 and 2003, which she said was triggered by disputes over local government seats and political structures allegedly manipulated by politicians.
The elder statesman accused former Delta State governor James Ibori of worsening the crisis through the creation and transfer of local government structures without due process, a move she said triggered years of bloodshed in the region.
“For eight years they fought us,” he said. “What is at stake is oil money. Every politician wants to control that area because of the oil wells on our land.”
Ogbebor argued that the Itsekiri are the original owners of Warri land, insisting that all the disputed territories had been adjudicated up to the Supreme Court in favor of the Itsekiri.
He described the Ijaw and Urhobo as settlers who later began to claim lands belonging to the Itsekiri.
“There is a ruling that everyone in Warri except the Itsekiri are settlers,” he said.

The Itsekiri leader has warned that continued repression and territorial encroachment could trigger another round of violent conflict in the Niger Delta.
“Nigeria will wake up one morning and the whole area will be on fire,” he warned. “And then it won’t be just the Itsekiri anymore; it will be a war.”
Ogbebor called on the Federal Government to urgently intervene by providing adequate protection to the Itsekiri people and revisiting past decisions relating to the establishment of districts and local government in Warri.
He also renewed calls for the creation of a separate Warri State, arguing that the Itsekiri people deserve political autonomy and protection.
“We want Warri State,” he declared. “We were a nation apart. Warri is vital and meets the conditions required for statehood.”
He also called for the reversal of the relocation of the Warri South West Local Government Headquarters from Ogidigben to Ogbe-Ijaw, insisting that the original gazetted position should be restored.
Ogbebor also called for the enforcement of existing court rulings on disputed lands in Okere and other parts of Warri, stressing that failure to comply with judicial pronouncements will continue to fuel unrest in the region.
The activist said the Itsekiri remained peaceful despite years of provocations, but warned there was a limit to the resistance.

“We are in our own land. We have not gone into no man’s land,” he said. “Why do they want to wipe us out?”
The press conference comes amid renewed tensions in parts of Delta State over political representation, land ownership and control of oil-producing communities.