THE SILENCE OF THE RESILIENT: Why President Tinubu Must Intervene and declare a state of emergency Before Delta State’s Fragile Peace Explodes

?There is a dangerous miscalculation currently operating within the political corridors of Asaba and Abuja: the assumption that the peaceful disposition of the Itsekiri nation is a sign of weakness.

For months, the people of the Warri Kingdom have demonstrated profound restraint, adhering to the rule of law, listening to the sobering counsel of our revered traditional leadership, and sheathing our swords in the pursuit of regional stability.

?However, let history remind the Nigerian state that the Itsekiri are the proud descendants of an ancient, sovereign kingdom whose ancestors were never conquered. Our respect for constitutional authority is a conscious choice, not a lack of capacity. But peace cannot exist in a vacuum; it must be firmly anchored on the pillars of justice, equity, and mutual respect.

?Today, that peace has been unilaterally fractured. While the Itsekiri nation bent backward to honor the peace initiatives of the Delta State Government, aggressive expansionist elements have chosen the path of provocation. The time for diplomatic pleasantries is over. The reality on the ground demands a blunt, unvarnished appraisal of a failing state administration and a rising non-state tyranny that threatens the very economic lifeblood of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

? The Failure of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori
?For over a year, since the highly sensitive and legally mandated issues of electoral and judicial delineation came to the fore, Delta State has been sitting on a powder keg. Rather than acting as an impartial arbiter and a resolute custodian of chief security executive powers, His Excellency, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, has chosen a path of calculated silence and political enablement.

?When the Governor appealed to all aggrieved parties to open blocked oil flow stations and give peace a chance, the Itsekiri complied out of respect for his office. Yet, what did the state get in return? Absolute defiance.
?The flagrant refusal of Government Ekpemupolo (popularly known as Tompolo) to even attend state-convened peace meetings is a definitive, public declaration of arrogance. By his actions, Tompolo has told the entire world that he does not take instructions from the Delta State Government. 

He has effectively signaled that he considers himself far above the constitutional office of the Governor of Delta State.
?Nowhere was this lawlessness more evident than in the recent actions at the Olero flow station.

 While a state-backed peace agreement was supposedly active, Tompolo’s foot soldiers and Ijaw youth groups were mobilized to protest and disrupt operations at Olero barely 24 hours later.
 This was not a random outburst; it was a state-defying directive aimed at tearing up the peace accord.

?Worse still, the Delta State Government has become an active participant in this lopsided aggression. The instruments of the state, specifically the state-sponsored media apparatus and the office of the State Commissioner for Information, have been weaponized to attack and silence any independent voice that dares to question the illegalities being perpetrated in the Warri axis. Instead of defending all Deltans, the current administration has turned its back on the Itsekiri people, watching silently while our heritage is systematically undermined.

?
?The economic reality of Delta State is simple: the vast majority of the critical, high-yielding oil and gas installations that sustain both the state’s federal allocation and the national treasury reside squarely within the ancestral boundaries of the Warri Kingdom and Itsekiri land. These resources and the lands they sit upon are an immutable inheritance given to us by God. They are not up for negotiation, and they will never be surrendered.

?Yet, we are witnessing an unprecedented wave of territorial entitlement and identity theft sponsored by aggressive actors. Consider the audacity of individuals like Matthew Tonghala, a man who has historically benefited from the renowned generosity and hospitality of the Itsekiri people. Today, Tonghala acts as a primary sponsor of hostility, actively attempting to rewrite geography by illegally renaming ancient Itsekiri territories, such as trying to transform Abiteye into Kenyagbene.

?This is a deliberate erasure of history, a cartographic invasion executed in broad daylight while the Delta State Government keeps its eyes wide shut. Let it be known clearly: No Itsekiri son or daughter will stand by and watch our ancestral wealth and names stolen. The Ijaws were the first to break the peace accord at Olero and across the flow stations. Whatever dynamic they wish to invite going forward, the Itsekiri nation is fully prepared, capable, and ready to meet them measure for measure.
?The Parody of Pipeline Protection: The Structural Irony of Tantita
?Perhaps the most glaring threat to national security is the continued operation of Tantita Security Services within Itsekiri territorial waters. We must ask ourselves fundamental questions as a nation: How did the Federal Government arrive at a junction where the protection of Nigeria’s most vital economic pipelines was outsourced to an unrepentant former militant leader, especially when the Nigerian Navy is constitutionally empowered, trained, and fully equipped to secure our waterways?
?Tantita has ceased to function merely as a private security firm; it has evolved into a heavily armed political weapon used to enforce territorial dominance and intimidate indigenous Itsekiri communities. Tompolo has utilized the immense financial leverage gained from these federal contracts to sponsor and sustain hostilities across the Warri kingdom.

 It is a profound national irony that the wealth generated from our own ancestral soil is being funneled back into private hands to suppress our people and violate our territorial integrity.

?An Urgent Call to Action: Why President Tinubu Must Intervene

?Because Delta State is a highly fragile security zone housing critical national infrastructure, Nigeria cannot afford a leadership vacuum where a non-state actor dictates terms to an elected governor. The local economy is suffocating, and the threat of full-blown communal clash looms larger by the day.

?We hereby call upon His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR), to wield his executive authority and take the following immediate, decisive steps to avert a catastrophe:

?1. Declare a State of Emergency in Delta State
?The current administration under Governor Sheriff Oborevwori has compromised its neutrality and demonstrated a total lack of political will to restrain warlords. To protect the national economy and restore structural sanity, Delta State requires the immediate appointment of a credible, disciplined, and entirely unbiased Military Administrator to stabilize the region.

?2. Revoke the Tantita Pipeline Surveillance Contract
?A private monopoly over national security assets by an individual who actively instigates communal instability is a ticking time bomb. The federal government must revoke the multi-billion naira surveillance contract from Tantita Security Services and return the absolute mandate of maritime and pipeline security to the Nigerian Navy and federal security agencies.

?3. Halt All Tantita Operations in Itsekiri Land
?With immediate effect, all operations, personnel, and armed vessels belonging to Tantita must be barred from entering or operating within Itsekiri ancestral waters and oil fields. Our communities will no longer live under the shadow of a state-sanctioned private militia.

?Conclusion: The Sword Is Out of the Sheath
?The Itsekiri nation has reached its threshold. We have been patient, we have been lawful, and we have been respectful. But our silence must never be confused with cowardice.
?The peace accord has been broken, not by us, but by those who believe that brute force and political patronage can displace the rightful owners of the land. We have sheathed our swords for as long as justice was promised; now that justice has been denied by the bias of the Delta State Government, we will stand firmly to defend our wealth, our name, and our ancestral inheritance. The federal government must act now before the embers of injustice kindle a fire that no one can put out.

We urge the Federal and State Governments to live up to their responsibilities as provided for in Section 14 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended)

That is one of the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy. It provides:
14(1) The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a State based on the principles of democracy and social justice.
14(2) It is hereby accordingly declared that:
(a) sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government through this Constitution derives all its powers and authority;
(b) the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government; and
(c) the participation by the people in their government shall be ensured in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.

Signed 

Comr. Mrs Tsaye Edeyibo Mene 
Convener Warri Reclamation Thrust 

Comr.  Misan Momorin 
Secretary 
Warri Reclamation Thrust

×