• Abigborodo
• Oil Field
• Okpe Community
• Uduaghan

OKPE LEADERS REJECT ABIGBORODO OIL FIELD NAME, FAULT UDUAGHAN’S CLAIMS IN DETAILED REJOINDER

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  CapitalTimesNews / 4 weeks
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• 4 min read

Leaders of the Sapele Okpe Community have issued a comprehensive statement rejecting claims by the Alema of Warri Kingdom, Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan, regarding the ownership and naming of the proposed Abigborodo Oil Field in Petroleum Prospecting Licence 220. The leaders insist the land belongs to the Okpe people. The statement, a response to a Facebook post by Uduaghan asserting the oil field was rightly named after Abigborodo Community, was jointly signed by Chief Onoriode Temiagin, Chief Austin Arieja, Chief Lt. Col. Babuba Moses Abeke (rtd.), Hon. Chief Godwin Atose and Chief Patrick Akomovba, representing the Sapele Okpe Community in Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State. The Okpe leaders described Uduaghan’s claims as misleading and contradicted by colonial records, government White Papers and legal instruments. They called on the Federal Ministry of Environment to heed the protest of the Udogun Okpe, the highest decision-making body of Okpe Kingdom, over the naming. “We wish to state for the umpteenth time that the area of land covering PPL 220 does not belong to the Abigborodo people. The White Paper of the Delta State Government produced in 2020 after an extensive judicial panel of enquiry unambiguously affirms this position,” the statement read. The leaders cited colonial-era documents, stating that a 1932 petition by the Olu of Itsekiri claiming ownership of the land was dismissed by colonial authorities. “The Colonial Masters found the claim of the Olu as lacking merit. The claim was dismissed and the Forest Reserve constituted,” they stated. They noted the reserve was named the Okpe-Urhobo Forest Reserve and administered by a Native Authority comprised of Okpe indigenes. The statement directly challenged Uduaghan’s assertions. “The Claim of Chief Uduaghan that Okpe authorities informed the Colonial Administrators that they have no land to contribute to the proposed Forest Reserve is one of the weakest and illogical fallacies ever proposed,” the leaders said. They also addressed a claim regarding Chief Alema Okonedo, an ancestor of Uduaghan. “Okonedo’s petition did not lead to any recommendation or legal instrument, nor was it upheld as falsely claimed by Chief Uduaghan,” the statement said, referencing a 1941 colonial government letter they say ended Itsekiri agitations over the reserve. The Okpe leaders asserted that the name Abigborodo Oil Field is a recent manipulation. “All existing records show that Abigborodo has no land in the Reserve, how then an oil field covering Okpe-Urhobo Forest Reserve is being designated as Abigborodo Oil Field without the input of local authorities or of the State,” they questioned. They revealed that in an October 2025 meeting with Navante Exploration and Production Limited, two Delta State commissioners directed the company to ensure the oil field’s name reflects the true land owners before commencing an Environmental Impact Assessment. The statement further denied that land was ever released to Abigborodo by the government. “Chief Uduaghan is aware that the land released by the Delta State Government was released to Otonyasere people… The government instrument enlarging Otonyatsere enclave by adding 200 acres in favour of Otonyasere people is contained in Delta State Legal Notice 11 of 1996,” they stated, adding that another 1200 hectares was de-reserved for Sapele Okpe Community. The leaders concluded by advising the Federal Ministry of Environment and Navante not to be deceived. “The ownership of what does not belong to Abigbordo is what the leaders of Abigborodo have been asking for since 1932. It is an impossible request. FME is not competent to grant this request through Oil field naming,” they stated. They challenged Uduaghan and Abigborodo people to file a court action for declaration of title, stating, “In the absence of this, the imaginary historical records being cited over and again by Chief Uduaghan are not, and cannot be recognized as conferring ownership.” This rejoinder follows Uduaghan’s earlier statement which asked the Federal Ministry of Environment to disregard Okpe protests, maintaining the oil field rightly belongs to Abigborodo Community. The dispute has reignited longstanding tensions over the Okpe–Urhobo Forest Reserve, with federal and state authorities expected to review the competing claims.