Dafinone Slams Uduaghan, Insists Sapele Land Ownership Is Legally Settled
Senator Ede Dafinone has urged Itsekiri leaders and the Uduaghan family to urgently caution Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan, the Alema of Warri Kingdom, over what he described as false, provocative and legally settled claims to ownership of Sapele land, warning that such assertions threaten peace and public order in the Delta town.
The senator, who also chairs the Sapele Okpe Community Land Trust Association, made the call while responding to a caveat emptor issued by Chief Uduaghan against the January 24, 2026 foundation-laying ceremony of the new Sub-Palace of the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom in Sapele. The caveat, circulated on social media and published in Saturday Vanguard, questioned the authority of the Okpe monarch over Sapele land.
Dafinone stated that title to all lands in Sapele is vested in the Sapele Okpe Community Land Trust Association, stressing that Sapele remains an indigenous Okpe town despite its cosmopolitan population. He said the Okpe people are the only indigenous ethnic and linguistic group in Sapele and across the entire Sapele Local Government Area.
He cited the Delta State Traditional Rulers, Council and Chiefs Law, which recognises only the Orodje of Okpe as the traditional ruler of Sapele Local Government Area, noting that the Olu of Warri has never sought or obtained statutory recognition in the area due to the absence of any indigenous Itsekiri community in Sapele.
The senator dismissed any authority of the Alema of Warri to challenge the Okpe monarch, describing the title as non-indigenous to Sapele. He added that the Orodje of Okpe has maintained a sub-palace in Sapele for decades without objection, even during the lifetime of prominent Itsekiri residents of the town.
On land ownership, Dafinone said the matter had long been settled by courts, citing the landmark case Chief Ayomano & Anor v. Ginuwa II (9 WACA 85), in which the Olu of Warri, representing the Itsekiri people of Sapele, challenged Okpe ownership and lost.
