Warri: Withdraw, expunge the fraudulent name of Bolou - Ama Community in your Quit Notice, MPIHDH writes Nigeria Customs Service

Itsekiris from Warri South, Warri South - West and Warri North Local Government Areas of Delta State, under the aegis of Movement for the Protection of Iwere Homeland, Development and History, MPIHDH, have called on the Assistant Legal Adviser, Nigeria Customs Service, Eastern Marine Command, Federal Secretariat, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Mr. Nenfort Amos Esq to withdraw and expunge what they described as offensive and fraudulent name of " Bolou - Ama Community" in a quit notice issued to " illegal occupants" of the Nigeria Customs Service premises and its appurtenances in Warri, Delta State. 

The Nigeria Customs Service, Eastern Marine Command , had in the said quit notice dated July 1, 2025, named the area in question as " Bolou - Ama Community " and gave the occupants ultimatum to vacate.                                

But in a petition addressed to the Assistant Legal Adviser of Nigeria Customs Service, Eastern Marine Command, Comrade Omajugho Odeworitse, Engr. Desmond Anoumougharan, Engr. Victor Kpenosen, Prince Jolomi Odeli, Comrade Tuale Aderojo, Mr. Uranranoritse Edum, Comrade Bishop Ojumude, Comrade Stanley Oritsetimeyin Edero, Comrade Michael Agbateminigin Efele and Mr. Godwin Okotie, on behalf of accredited leaders, stakeholders and representatives of MPIHDH, urged the Customs Service to re - issue the said notice to quit, to read " to illegal occupants of Nigeria Customs Service Premises and its appurtenances, along Old NPA, Warri, Delta State." The MPIHDH's petition, which was made available to Fresh Angle International Thursday evening, July 17, stated inter - alia :" RE: NOTICE TO QUIT.

1. Our law firm has been briefed and our professional service retained by maseer: (1). Comrade Omajugho Odeworitse, (2). Engr. Desmond Anoumougharan, (3). Engr. Victor Kpenosen, (4). Prince Jolomi Odell, (5). Comrade Tuale Aderojo, (6). Mr Uranranoritse Edun, (7). Comrade Bishop Ojumude, (8) Comrade Stanley Oritsetimeyiin Edero, (8). Comrade Michael Agbateminigin Efele and (9) Mr Godwin Okotie, indigenous Itsekiri indigenes of Warri South, Warri South West and Warri North local government areas of Delta State and accredited leaders, stakeholders, and representatives of the apex Ítsekiri socio-cultural organization, Movement for the Protection of Iwere Homeland, Development and History (MPIHDH) Worldwide at home and in diaspora to draw your immediate attention to a letter titled, "NOTICE TO QUIT" dated 1st of July, 2025 issued by you to illegal occupants of the Nigeria Customs Service, premises and its appurtenances in Warri Delta State. A copy of the letter under reference, is hereby attached hereunder for your personal perusal.

2. It is our clients avowed position after a very painstaking examination and detailed review of the said letter, of "NOTICE TO QUIT", it was discovered that it was written and addressed by you in a rather misleading, fictitious , non-existing, vexatious fraudulent, offensive and highly provocative unknown community name in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, which your referred to as "BOLOU-AMA COMMUNITY" along old NPA, Warri Delta State.

3. They wish to state unequivocally that while they completely recognize the rights of the Nigeria Customs Service to issue notice to quit to illegal occupants of their premises in Warri under our extant laws, such rights must be exercised within the ambit of the law and must not become a calculated attempt to advertently or inadvertently indulge in apparent unlawful renaming of Itsekiri ancestral homeland, which your letter seems to suggest.

4. Furthermore, our clients wish to emphasize that in the leases granted by the Itsekiri Paramount Ruler, late Chief Dore Numa in 1906, 1908, and 1911 as representative of the Olu of Warri and the Itsekiri people, and that granted by late Chief Ogbe Yonwuren, an Itsekiri prince from Ugbowangue community to John Holt Nigeria Limited, a lease that was later taken over by the federal government for the establishment of the Nigeria Port Authority (NPA), the premises and appurtenances of the Nigeria Customs Service in Warri INCLUSIVE, there no single community known or called BOLOU-AMA COMMUNITY in the entire leases, and legal documents, described and compromised in the survey maps covering the areas where these lands in question are situate. They note with grave concerns also that a close analysis of the entire Deed of Release given to the Itsekiri Communal Land Trust by the government in 1959, including the attached schedule therein where the permission of the Itsekiri people was officially and legally sought through the Itsekiri Communal Land Trust to exempt the stretch of lands covering the present A'Division/Area Command of the Nigeria Police Force Warri, parts of the GRA Warri, the Nigeria Navy base Warri, the General Hospital, Warri, the Dore Numa market (main market, Warri), Miller waterside, Palnapina yard and other places for public use and purposes, there is NO single community known as BOLOU-AMA community whatsoever to the best of their knowledge. They insist without any form of ambiguity that the following Itsekiri aboriginal communities of Okere, Ugbori, Ekurede and Ugbowangue are the only communities in the areas under reference. They also maintained that it is pertinent to note that other parcel of lands covering the area where the Nigeria Customs Service premises and its appurtenances are domiciled, are owned by prominent Itsekiri families such as the Ogisi, the Ereku, the Harriman and several others and at no point in history or legal documents is any place calked BOLOU-AMA COMMUNITY. (Emphasis our).

4. Our clients wishes to notify you that they are not unaware of clandestine moves been orchestrated by desperate elements and land grabbers who have no single historical, documented and legal connection to Warri South local government area, the Itsekiri peoples ancestral homeland who in recent times have been going around with mischievous intents seeking to illegally rename and falsely lay baseless claims under the law to Itsekiri ancestral homeland in a mischievous and criminal bid to further their expansionist agenda. It is our clients advice the Nigeria Customs Service, through your office/department, should not provide such faceless and disgruntled elements a platform to promote their false claims thereby becoming complicit and liable in such illegalities. They strongly recommend that as qualified legal practitioners, it is mandatory to always represent clients within the bounds of the law always in order to avoid falling into the pitfalls of failing to exercise due diligence before making public comments and statements on behalf of your employees.

5. It is our client's measured observation that in the recent Independent National Electoral Commission's (INEC) Supreme Court' ordered ward delineation exercise in Warri Federal Constituency of Delta State which has generated so much controversies and tension, this particular fraudulent and fake community name(s) "BOLOU-AMA", "EWEIN" and "OGBE-IJOH URBAN" were illegally used to create fake electoral wards and polling units for illegal occupants of warehouses, shops, markets, waterside, industrial layouts, companies facilities, and public spaces in Itsekiri ancestral homeland of Warri South local government area (regards not had to the historical and legal rights of ownership of lands in respect of the Itsekiri ethnic nationality)which are usually closed during elections periods. Our clients and the larger Itsekiri people are already challenging what they unanimously considered a huge fraud in various courts of competent jurisdiction in Nigeria. Our clients call on the Nigeria Customs Service to very detailed, very professional, circumspect, discreet and be very wary of not willy nilly joining the bandwagon of these disgruntled characters in order to avoid any legal consequences arising therefrom from any legal moves explored by them to seek redress in the law court should the need arise.

6. Our clients respectfully demand/request that you withdraw the notice to quit and completely expunge the offensive and fraudulent name of "BOLOU-AMA COMMUNITY" as it is prejudicial to their individual and collective interest as bonafide Itsekiri indigenes of Warri South, Warri South West and Warri North local government areas of Delta State in both the immediate and long term basis. They urge you to re-issue the said notice to quit as follows:

"TO ILLEGAL OCCUPANTS OF NIGERIA CUSTOMS SERVICE PREMISES AND ITS APPURTENANCES, ALONG OLD NPA, WARRI, DELTA STATE".  

7. They also respectfully request that you also give the correct address as mentioned above the kind of publicity and traction the wrong address you used initially has gained. Doing this,, will be in the best interest of equity, good conscience and natural justice. They insist that using the correct address will also not prejudice the interest of the Nigeria Customs Service nor that of the Itsekiri people who gave the land in question to the Nigeria Customs Service in the first place. It is our client's instructions that should you wilfully refused or intentionally neglect to heed their wise counsel on/before the due date of the expiration of the due date of the notice to quit, we should take necessary steps to seek redress in the court of law. 

8. While we anticipate your positive response to this request from our clients, kindly accept the warmest regards of our esteemed considerations. 

Thank you

Dated this .11th day of July, 2025. 

,.......................................

Ologhojoba Aderojor James Ereku Esq.

Cc

Mr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi,

 The Comptroller General,

The Nigeria Customs Service, 

Abidjan Street, 

Zone 3, Wuse,

Abuja, FCT,.

Nigeria.

Mr Chika Dim,

The Controller,

The Nigeria Customs Service,

Eastern Marine Command,

Federal Secretariat,

Port Harcourt,

Rivers State,

Nigeria.

Hon. Isaac Weyimi Agbatieyinero,

Chairman,

Warri South Local Government Area,

Warri,

Delta State,

Nigeria.

Chief Edward Ekpoko,

Chairman,

Itsekiri Leaders of Thought (ILOT),

Warri,

Delta State,

Nigeria."

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