By Passman Akpos
A Niger Delta activist and commentator, Most Senior Comrade Wisdom Oniekpar Ikuli, has called on Ijaw people to emulate the consistency, unity and strategic advocacy of the Yoruba and Ogoni ethnic nationalities in order to advance the political and economic interests of the Ijaw nation.
In a lengthy statement titled “Yorubas and Ogonis: The Stories of the Potency of Consistent Advocacies That Ijaws Need to Learn,” Ikuli argued that Ijaws historically pioneered both armed and nonviolent resistance struggles in Nigeria but have failed to sustain the level of coordinated advocacy needed to achieve lasting political gains.
The activist traced the historical relationship between the Ijaw people and early European explorers, insisting that Ijaw territories served as the gateway through which Western civilization and trade spread into other parts of present-day Nigeria.
According to him, the Ijaws were among the first ethnic nationalities to have direct contact with European traders due to their strategic location along the Atlantic coastline, where early Portuguese merchants first arrived before the British colonial administration later expanded into the hinterlands.
Ikuli maintained that the Ijaws played critical roles in the economic and political evolution of Nigeria, describing them as “originators of resistance struggles” later adopted by other ethnic groups.
He particularly highlighted the contributions of nationalist figures such as Sir Herbert Macaulay and Chief Ernest Sisei Ikoli in the fight for Nigeria’s independence, while also referencing the Niger Delta Republic declared in 1966 by Major Isaac Jasper Adaka Boro and his Niger Delta Volunteer Force.
Drawing comparisons with the Yoruba political establishment, Ikuli argued that the Yoruba ethnic group had consistently used strategic advocacy and political coordination to secure national relevance and political power.
He pointed to the 1999 presidential transition in which only Yoruba candidates contested for the presidency following the annulment of the June 12 election and the political crisis that followed the death of Chief MKO Abiola.
He further cited the emergence of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo as Vice President in 2015 and the eventual election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2023 as examples of what he described as the success of sustained political agitation and elite consensus among the Yoruba people.
According to him, the Yoruba political class, intellectuals and activists often work together behind the scenes despite public disagreements in pursuit of common ethnic and political interests.
The activist also praised the Ogoni struggle led by the late environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), describing it as one of the most successful advocacy movements in Nigeria’s history.
He noted that despite the execution of Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists by the military regime of General Sani Abacha in 1995, the struggle eventually attracted international attention and forced the Nigerian government to begin environmental remediation and development projects in Ogoni land.
Ikuli listed the ongoing Ogoni clean-up exercise, federal infrastructure projects, international recognition and the establishment of the Federal University of Environment and Technology in Rivers State among the gains of persistent advocacy by the Ogoni people.
He lamented that unlike the Yorubas and Ogonis, Ijaw leaders and intellectuals are often divided, marginalized or treated as enemies whenever they criticize governments or political authorities.
The activist specifically questioned the treatment of outspoken Niger Delta voices such as Joseph Evah and Ann-Kio Briggs, warning that the Ijaw nation risks losing its political relevance if it continues to undermine its own activists and socio-cultural institutions.
He called for stronger and more independent leadership within the Ijaw National Congress (INC) and the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), insisting that the organizations should not be turned into instruments of political patronage.
Ikuli urged Ijaws across the Niger Delta to embrace what he described as “Neo-Ijawism,” a renewed movement aimed at rebuilding unity, cultural consciousness and collective political action among Ijaw communities.
“Whenever Ijaws work together and speak with one united voice, positive things happen in Ijaw land,” he stated.
The statement, which has already sparked debates across political and ethnic circles in the Niger Delta, comes amid renewed conversations about resource control, political representation and regional identity in Nigeria.
