Okpella traditional title holders declare Okuokpellagbe seat vacant

The Ukhomuyio Concern Citizens have commended the highest traditional title holders in Okpella, known as the Itsogwa (men) and Egah/Igbidegwa (women), for declaring that the Okuokpellagbe stool remains vacant.

Mr. Moses Izeokhe stated this while addressing journalists on the current position of the Okuokpellagbe of Okpella Kingdom in Benin City.

The group said the pronouncement has made it clear that there is presently no Okuokpellagbe in Okpella, stressing that anyone still parading himself as such does so merely on the basis of a letter of appointment he procured. “He is therefore an Okuokpellagbe on paper,” the group said.

It further expressed concern over threats of suspension, arrest and title removal allegedly directed at elderly chiefs. 

According to the group: “We sympathize with our elderly chiefs who are being threatened with suspension, arrest, and title removal. The decision before these elders is to either pay homage or face court judgment for the alleged murder of some of our sons brutally murdered in 2024. A case that these elders and village heads know nothing about. 

"These village heads and elders continue to receive bullying and threats daily from these heartless souls. There is no cause for alarm, as our God is not asleep. 

"We trust that our judicial system will work someday and the real perpetrators will face justice.”

The group also sympathized with Chief Kola Ozomude, whom it described as being persecuted for his courage and honesty. 

It alleged that Chief Ozomude had been blackmailed through the courts for standing firm in defense of Okpella culture and affirming that communal lands belong to kindreds.

It recalled that the late Chief Giwa Inamudu and late Chief Felix Kadiri Sado had affirmed in their 1965 affidavits that all communal lands in Okpella were owned by various kindreds, stressing that Chief Ozomude’s only “offense” was upholding this truth.

The group alleged that proceeds from Imioko/Imiokpe land were being paid into a personal account. 

"No traditional ruler has the right to negotiate on behalf of anyone’s property nor determine how anyone would use his or her money. It is unethical to use Imioko/Imiokpe money for building a police station already in the Nigeria Police Commission’s budget, a court building already captured in the judiciary’s budget, and a bank building that can be rented or acquired anywhere by any bank,” it said.

The Ukhomuyio Concern Citizens pledged to continue praying for truth to prevail over intimidation and lies. 

They dismissed the intervention of VerydarkMan (VDM), insisting that “no amount of effort can correct a fundamentally flawed process.”

They appealed to Governor Monday Okpebholo to correct what they described as a violation of extant laws by outsiders, so that history would remember him as a courageous leader who stood for truth.