.
The Friday’s failure of Jonathan to perform
the ground breaking ceremony of the project
had sparked controversy with many
asking why the President would suspend a
ceremony because of a threat by his kinsmen.
“President Jonathan’s refusal to perform the
ground breaking ceremony of the
project as fixed for Friday was a show of
cowardice unexpected of his office which
should stand for the rule of law.

berem:


The fear of Tompolo is the beginning of cowardice by Jonathan.

OgagaMic:
THE Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has invited Itsekiri and Ijaw leaders
in Delta State to a meeting in Abuja tomorrow over the contentious ownership
of the $16 billion Export Processing Zone, EPZ, project site.

President Goodluck Jonathan abruptly cancelled his visit to Delta State to perform
the ground breaking ceremony of the project, renamed Delta Gas City by the
Federal Government, on Friday, following a threat by the Ijaw of Gbaramatu Kingdom
in Warri South-West Local Government Area
to unleash violence if he came without first
resolving their grievances.

It was the second time Jonathan cancelled the ground breaking ceremony, having
done so in June, based on the same reasons advanced by the Ijaw.

Secretary of the Leaders of Thought, Mr. Edward Ekpoko, confirmed to Sunday
Vanguard, last night, that he was aware to
tomorrow’s meeting.

An Ijaw leader, who confirmed that he was already in Abuja for the meeting, said, “The
meeting is summoned by the Group Managing Director, GMD, of NNPC. They are
saying they did not know that Ijaw actually
own part of the land acquired by the Delta State government for the project and they
did not even know that there is crisis of this dimension over the project site until
we protested, last Wednesday.”

The Federal Government, in a statement, last Thursday, formally announcing the
postponement of the ground breaking ceremony of the Gas Revolution Industrial
Park, GRIP, said the decision was taken by
the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, after consultations with Governor Emmanuel
Uduaghan of Delta State.

Sunday Vanguard was reliably informed that Uduaghan, who had stated 24 hours earlier that nobody could stop Jonathan
from coming to Delta to perform the
ground breaking ceremony, was taken aback at the postponement contrary to the
claim that the decision was taken after
consultations with him.

In fact, the Itsekiri Leaders of Thought, ILT, an influential Itsekiri group, led by Pa J.O.S
Ayomike, never knew the President had cancelled the trip to the state until the day
of the ceremony.

The Friday’s failure of Jonathan to perform
the ground breaking ceremony of the project had sparked controversy with many
asking why the President would suspend a ceremony because of a threat by his kinsmen.

“President Jonathan’s refusal to perform the ground breaking ceremony of the
project as fixed for Friday was a show of cowardice unexpected of his office which
should stand for the rule of law. He has shown that he has joined the Ijaw militants
in building fences among the ethnic nationalities in the Niger Delta and Nigeria”, the ILT said.

An Ijaw leader told Sunday Vanguard, yesterday, “We are not against the EPZ
project, what we are saying is that the project is on Ijaw land as well as it is on Itsekiri land. So it should not be named
after Ogidigben, an Itsekiri community alone.”

The Ajuwaoyiboyami of Warri Kingdom, Chief Ayiri Emami, alias Akulagba, lambasted
Jonathan for abandoning the ground breaking ceremony because of threat by
some Ijaw ex-militants.

He said, “The truth must be told that Itsekiri people can no longer fold our arms and
watch Government Ekpemupolo in
collaboration with some of his Ijaw brothers and a few Itsekiri dissidents continue to take what God has given to us.”

source : http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/11/epz-controversy-nnpc-invites-itsekiri-ijaw-leaders-talks-abuja/

omololu2020:
nigerians are takin nonsense from dis ijaw pple,if only i can bcom president in 2015,wot happened in odi would av been a childs play...d itsekiris hav to vote APC next year,itsekiris own warri,so dey should b ones in charge of d 3 local govt

rawpadgin:
itsekire owns warri
are u serious

rawpadgin:
itsekire owns warri
are u serious

omololu2020:
nigerians are takin nonsense from dis ijaw pple,if only i can bcom president in 2015,wot happened in odi would av been a childs play...d itsekiris hav to vote APC next year,itsekiris own warri,so dey should b ones in charge of d 3 local govt

rawpadgin:
itsekire owns warri
are u serious

neenar:
Yep, Warri is for the Iweres!

rawpadgin:
itsekire owns warri
are u serious

OgagaMic:


yoruba speaking..

Hw is Warri owned by itsekeri ?.. Have you been to warri b4... SMH.. Yoruba's Always supporting the itsekiri since 1900

OgagaMic:


yoruba speaking..

Hw is Warri owned by itsekeri ?.. Have you been to warri b4... SMH.. Yoruba's Always supporting the itsekiri since 1900

Djicemob:
Matter of fact, they own delta state.These ijaw people are just trouble makers

omololu2020:
y cant d ijaw and urohbo stop d western region govt from changin olu of itsekiri to olu of warri.were d ijaws and urohobos sleepin back den.

Djicemob:
Matter of fact, they own delta state.These ijaw people are just trouble makers

rawpadgin:
I totally disagree with u, the ijaws are no trouble makers, i know this because i leave em

OgagaMic:


ijaw re no trouble maker its is ur kit and kin (the itsekiri) re the once looking 4 trouble

rawpadgin:
itsekire owns warri
are u serious

Djicemob:
How? In regards to the matter in view.

OAUTemitayo:
You cannot know more than the supreme court

OgagaMic:


looking at the matter.. The ijaw own 70% of the land that will be used 4 the project so y do the itsekeri want to claim everything as if its all on there land.. They ijaw wanted somethin lyk both will share they glory

Djicemob:
The problem is not with the itsekiris but the govt,NNPC or the coy incharge of the incoming company.They should be directing their protest to the NNPC or the govt not itsekiris or any other tribe.

OgagaMic:

you are right the name warri was derived from itsekeri bt tat does nt mean they are the owner of the land.. Warri cut across the urhobo's and the Ijaw land.. So hw re they the owner
the itsekiri don not make up to 40% of warri landmass.. Get your fact right

OgagaMic:


awolowo never liked the urhobo's .. And who told you they urhobos and ijaws didn't fight 4 tat name to be changed ?

neenar:
Apart from ogbe ijoh and a few other ijaw enclaves, can you list the "60%" you own? Look, dude, Ijaw terrestrial and indeed, aquatic territory starts from Burutu and ends in forcados. Need I school you more?

OgagaMic:


the itsekeri always want to claim wat not there's tat y the ijaw re angry

omololu2020:
y cant u pple go to court

Djicemob:
How? In regards to the matter in view.