Okakuro Senator Ede Dafinone, Chairman of the Sapele Okpe Community Land Trust Association, has rejected a caveat emptor issued by Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan, the Alema of Warri Kingdom, over the foundation laying ceremony of a new Sub-Palace of the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom in Sapele, Delta State.
The caveat, which was widely circulated on social media and published in the Saturday Vanguard of January 24, 2026, warned against the ceremony scheduled for the same day.
In a detailed response issued on behalf of the Sapele Okpe Community Land Trust Association, Dafinone described the caveat as legally baseless, historically inaccurate, and capable of inciting communal tension.
According to Dafinone, title to all lands in Sapele is vested in the Sapele Okpe Community Land Trust Association, the statutory body responsible for the management and control of land on behalf of the indigenous Okpe people.
He acknowledged Sapele’s cosmopolitan character but stressed that the Okpe people remain the only indigenous ethnic and linguistic group in Sapele Town and the entire Sapele Local Government Area, as recognised under the Delta State Traditional Rulers, Council and Chiefs Law.
He cited the Schedule to the law, which identifies Sapele Local Government Area as belonging exclusively to the Okpe Clan with Urhobo as the indigenous language, and recognises only the Orodje of Okpe as the statutory traditional ruler for the area.
By contrast, Warri South Local Government Area, he noted, recognises Itsekiri, Urhobo and Ijaw clans due to their indigenous presence there.
Dafinone stated that ownership of Sapele lands has long been settled by courts of competent jurisdiction, referencing the landmark case of Chief Ayomano & Another v. Ginuwa II (9 WACA 85), in which the West African Court of Appeal upheld the Okpe people’s ownership of Sapele lands and dismissed claims of Itsekiri overlordship.
He explained that the judgment established that the Okpe people were the original settlers on Sapele land and that Itsekiri presence in the town began only after the Nana War of 1894, when displaced Itsekiri groups sought refuge in Sapele with the permission of the Okpe people under customary tenancy arrangements.
Addressing claims that the judgment limited Okpe ownership to 510 acres, Dafinone described the assertion as a misrepresentation of the court’s findings, clarifying that the acreage related to a colonial lease and did not diminish Okpe ownership of Sapele lands.
On the Sub-Palace project, Dafinone maintained that the Orodje of Okpe, as the sole statutorily recognised traditional ruler of Sapele Local Government Area, does not require permission from any external authority to construct a palace or sub-palace within his domain.
He added that an existing Sub-Palace of the Orodje has existed in Sapele for decades without objection.
He also rejected claims of Itsekiri overlordship over any part of Sapele, noting that even the Olu of Warri has never asserted such authority and is legally estopped from doing so by existing judgments.
Dafinone expressed concern over references to potential communal unrest in the caveat, describing them as provocative, and called on security agencies to remain vigilant to prevent any breakdown of law and order. He warned that responsibility for any unrest would rest with those who instigated it.
While reaffirming the Okpe people’s commitment to peaceful coexistence with all residents of Sapele, Dafinone cautioned that restraint should not be mistaken for weakness, and urged community leaders across ethnic lines to reject inflammatory rhetoric capable of undermining peace in the town.
