FEATURE REPORT: Toru-Ibe State Debate Deepens: IYC Berates Edo Lawmakers for “Distorting History” and Fueling Misconceptions About Ijaw Ancestral Lands
FEATURE REPORT:
Toru-Ibe State Debate Deepens: IYC Berates Edo Lawmakers for “Distorting History” and Fueling Misconceptions About Ijaw Ancestral Lands
Global Egberi Media International
The debate over the proposed Toru-Ibe State — a long-standing aspiration of the Ijaw people — has ignited a fresh round of controversy after two Edo federal lawmakers, Murphy Osaro Omoruyi and Omosede Gabriella Igbinedion, made comments that the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has described as “misleading, poorly informed, and historically hollow.”
The reaction, which has now echoed across the Niger Delta, underscores a much deeper problem: the persistent attempt by certain political interests to oversimplify, distort, or altogether erase the centuries-old presence of the Ijaw people in areas within present-day Edo State.
In a powerful, meticulously worded statement, Comrade Freedom E. Atigbi, Ph.D, Deputy President of the IYC Worldwide, condemned the lawmakers’ submissions on the House floor as “an unfortunate spectacle, unbecoming of public officials, and demonstrably disconnected from historical truth.”
“A Display of Historical Poverty” — IYC Charges
Atigbi did not mince words.
According to him, the lawmakers’ positions revealed a level of historical ignorance that would have been easily avoided had History remained a compulsory subject in Nigerian schools.
“We watched seasoned lawmakers struggle to manufacture arguments that had no historical foundation,” he said.“Their rhetoric was stitched together not with facts, but with fear, insecurity, and the old political habit of diminishing Ijaw identity.”
He noted that this is not the first time that Bini political actors have attempted to force-fit Ijaw ancestral communities into a narrative of Bini territorial ownership.
But this attempt, he insists, is the most aggressive in recent years because the proposed Toru-Ibe State now has national attention and is being taken seriously by the relevant committees of the National Assembly.
The Deeper Issue: Historical Erasure
Atigbi explained that the Ijaw presence in Edo State is not an emotional claim, not a political creation, and certainly not an opportunistic move triggered by modern demographics.
Rather, it is:
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Ancient
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Documented
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Recognized by the colonial state
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Linguistically and culturally validated
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Geographically consistent with Ijaw migratory patterns
He pointed out that the Ijaw people occupied many of these territories long before the emergence of the current Bini political structure, long before British contact, and long before the drawing of boundaries for administrative convenience.
“Our people were here before the colonial state mapped out what later became Edo Province. We were here before the Benin monarchy expanded politically. These are facts preserved in documents, oral histories, and anthropology — not opinions,” Atigbi said.
The British Colonial Records: Evidence That Shatters the Bini Claim
To fully contextualize the issue, Atigbi revisited the old colonial intelligence and administrative reports — especially those of H. F. Marshall — that clearly identified and recognized Ijaw communities and governance systems.
These documents were not speculative; they were the basis for formal administrative divisions. As a result, the British created three Ijaw Native Court Areas — a direct acknowledgment that the Ijaw people were indigenous, structured, and distinct within the region.
1. Ekenwa Native Court Area
2. Ofunama Native Court Area (1928)
3. Siloko Native Court Area
These court areas:
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Were not random administrative creations
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Were based on cultural, linguistic, and ancestral identity
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Recognized the Ijaws as indigenous, not settlers
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Documented territorial boundaries pre-dating Nigeria itself
No modern political spin, Atigbi argued, can rewrite what is already proven and archived.
“We Will Not Be Intimidated Into Silence” — Ijaw Nation Speaks Firmly
Even more striking was the IYC’s stance that the Ijaw nation will not be provoked into chaos, but neither will it tolerate historical blackmail or territorial misrepresentation.
Atigbi stated that the Ijaw people will pursue all constitutional, democratic, peaceful, and legal avenues to ensure that their ancestral lands are rightfully recognized as part of the new Toru-Ibe State when created.
This, he said, is not negotiable.
“Customary ownership in Nigeria is determined by first settlement and sustained occupation. We meet this criterion comprehensively. Anyone pretending otherwise is either uninformed or deliberately deceptive.”
He warned against allowing political fear of losing economic territories — particularly oil-bearing communities — to influence the truth.
A Message to the National Assembly Committee: Stay Focused
Atigbi urged the committee handling state creation to protect itself from ethnic bias and misinformation.
He emphasized that:
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State creation MUST be rooted in truth, not sentiments
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Indigenous identity cannot be overridden by political alliances
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Emotional outbursts from lawmakers must never become national policy
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Historical facts must guide constitutional decisions
A Larger Conversation: When Truth Becomes a Threat
This episode has opened a fresh conversation about how Nigerian ethnic histories are often manipulated based on economic and political interests. The Ijaw nation’s struggle for recognition in Edo State is a case study in:
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Historical erasure
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Territorial contestation
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Political intimidation
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And the dangerous rise of revisionist narratives
But this time, the Ijaw nation is not stepping back.
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Statement by Comr. Freedom E. Atigbi, Ph.D — Deputy President, IYC Worldwide
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