…Want Presentation Of Staff Of Office Suspended
By Onome Oghenetega
The first Royal Family to the revered Onicha-Olona Kingdom in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State, Ugbe Royal family has asked Governor Ifeanyi Okowa from presenting a Staff of Office to anybody not from the royal family.
It was learned that the State Government has concluded plans to present a Staff of Office to an indigene of the community who is not from the royal family on Tuesday 5th October, 2019 as next Obi of Onicha-Olona Kingdom.
In a petition signed on behalf of the Ugbe Royal Family by Prince Odiakaose E. Nwabuokei, the royal family of Idumu-Ugbeh Quarters passionately appealed to the Okowa-led administration to stop whatever plan it has for installing an Obi Okpalabisi in Onicha-Olona.
It said going ahead with the installation and presentation Staff of Office to anyone aside the recognised hier to the throne, Prince Erasmus N. Nwabuokei, could set the kingdom in another needless round of crisis.
A copy of the petition made NIGER DELTA TODAY, the royal family contended that the Obiship in Onicha-Olona is purely hereditary as against the Okpalabisi system bring introduced by some group of persons in the kingdom.
It described the introduction of Okpalabisi system as alien to culture and tradition of Onicha- Olona and the Anioma people of the state.
According to it, “The assumption of “no opposition” to court decision between Okpalabisi and their opponent in court is unfounded. We the Idumu-Ugbe Qtrs have made our stance known, several times, to the Delta State Government and the Onicha-Olona Obi in Council, the Board of Trustees of Onicha-Olona and the Onicha-Olona Development Union (OODU).
“The system of Kingship of Onicha-Olona people is not Okpalabisi System but Hereditary: Reference Odebala Commission Report and the subsequent Court decision of August 12th, 2005 by Hon. Justice T. O. Diai (Judge).
“Okpalabisi system stands in stark contradiction to the prevailing kingship tradition of our people. It’s an alien culture to our land. It’s NOT the order of Kingship in Benin where Onicha-Olona originated from. It is not the conventional order of Kingship in Anioma community in general. To lure the Honorable Governor into endorsing such is to make him an accomplice to the violation of the tradition of the people of Onicha-Olona by the Okpalabis society.
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“Hence, we call on the Honorable Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and the Delta State Government to see to it that your Government did not repeat the abject and dastard error the British Government inflicted on Onicha-Olona which needs to be corrected promptly.
“We the Ugbeh Royal Family have duly and legally processed our Staff of Office since 2017 as the rightful Royal Family and the notice of the processed Staff of Office was made public by the Government of Delta State on the Government public notice board with no one from Onicha-Olona objecting to it for the period that the law/rules governing the process requires.”
Below is full text of the petition:
THE FIRST KING OF ONICHA-OLONA KINGDOM
(UGEH UGBEH “THE OBA LI ISIKA”)
(Ugbe is The King; We are The Children of Ugbe; Nwadei Bu Agwu
ugbe.royal.palace@gmail.com
Our Ref: ……………… Your Ref: …………… Date:10/27/2019…
ATTN: DELTA STATE GOVERNMENT
OPEN LETTER OF PROTEST AND PETITION AGAINST RECOGNITION OF THE WRONG SYSTEM
(OKPALABIS) FOR THE OBISHIP SEAT IN ONICHA-OLONA
Your Excellency, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and The Delta State Gvernment,
The Ugbe Royal family of Onicha-Olona (Idumu-Ugbe Qtrs) want to formally inform the Delta State Government that the Court decision of January 2019 was not between Idumu-Ugbe People (The Ugbeh Royal Family) and Okpalabisi society. While we admit that Mr. Dumbili Nwadiajueboe (a.k.a Nwaju) is not the right person for the Throne of Onicha-Olona, we do not agree with the court decision for the Okpalabisi society because the Court DID NOT take the Royal Rights of Idumu-Ugbeh Qtrs (the legitimate family) to whom the Throne of Onicha-Olona belongs, into consideration in the Court decision as Ugbeh Royal Family was not part of the litigation process and the Court did not hear the Idumu-Ugbe people out for proper court decision making.
For this reason, we are writing in PROTEST of the Government recognition of anyone outside the Ugbeh Royal family as the Obi of Onicha-Olona and are calling on the Delta State Executive Council to stop whatever plan for installing an Obi Okpalabisi in Onicha-Olona for the following reasons:
1. The assumption of “no opposition” to court decision between Okpalabisi and their opponent in court is unfounded. We the Idumu-Ugbe Qtrs have made our stance known, several times, to the Delta State Government and the Onicha-Olona Obi in Council, the Board of Trustees of Onicha-Olona and the Onicha-Olona Development Union (OODU).
2) The system of Kingship of Onicha-Olona people is not Okpalabisi System but Hereditary: Reference Odebala Commission Report and the subsequent Court decision of August 12th, 2005 by Hon. Justice T. O. Diai (Judge).
3) Okpalabisi system stands in stark contradiction to the prevailing kingship tradition of our people. It’s an alien culture to our land. It’s NOT the order of Kingship in Benin where Onicha-Olona originated from.
It is not the conventional order of Kingship in Anioma community in general. To lure the Honorable Governor into endorsing such is to make him an accomplice to the violation of the tradition of the people of Onicha-Olona by the Okpalabis society. Hence, we call on the Honorable Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and the Delta State Government to see to it that your Government did not repeat the abject and dastard error the British Government inflicted on Onicha-Olona which needs to be corrected promptly.
4) We the Ugbeh Royal Family have duly and legally processed our Staff of Office since 2017 as the rightful Royal Family and the notice of the processed Staff of Office was made public by the Government of Delta State on the Government public notice board with no one from Onicha-Olona objecting to it for the period that the law/rules governing the process requires.
5) The Right to the Throne of Onicha-Olona is the Right bestowed by The AMILGHTY GOD, in HIS Divinity and Sovereignty on the Family of Ugbeh as the history of Onicha-Olona shows. The history, culture and tradition of Onicha-Olona till the kingship tussle began in 1900 is clear and MUST NOT be ignored. To extrapolate an alien tradition to overshadow prior centuries tradition is unconscionable.
6) We sincerely, peacefully and respectfully, implore the Delta State Government to see that NO one tempers with the Ugbeh Royal Family’s duly and legally processed Staff of Office under the Delta State Government and we publicly appeal to the Delta State Government to make effort to restore the Throne of Onicha-Olona to the Family of HRH Obi (Oba) Ugbeh to whom the Throne belongs by giving the Staff of Office to the present Heir to The Throne of Ugbeh (Prince Erasmus N. Nwabuokei) as indicated in the processed documents. What belongs to one is what one asks for and we are asking for what belong to us.
For Idumu-Ugbeh Qtrs (The Ugbeh Royal Family).
Signed By: Odiakaose E. Nwabuokei
EBON
