By Charles Pemu 
Community leaders in Ogidigben, situated within the Warri South-West Local Government Area of Delta State, have issued an urgent appeal to the Federal and State Governments following a violent incursion by armed groups. During a press briefing in Warri on Saturday, December 27, 2025, Mr. Tony Edegbele, Chairman of the Administrative and Development Committee of Ogidigben Federated Communities, characterized the incident as a coordinated assault designed to terrorize law-abiding citizens and destabilize the traditional order of the region.
The crisis reportedly escalated on December 20, 2025, a day when many community members were in Warri for the formal installation of Captain John Okpeyor Daje as a chief of the Warri Kingdom by His Majesty, Ogiame Atuwatse III, the Olu of Warri. According to Mr. Edegbele, the absence of residents facilitated a full-scale invasion by armed youths mobilized from outside the area. The attackers allegedly overran the town, forcing vulnerable groups—including women, children, and the elderly—to seek refuge in surrounding forests while homes and businesses were systematically looted and destroyed.
Financial losses resulting from the arson and theft are conservatively estimated in the hundreds of millions of naira. Addressing reports of a fatality during the unrest, Mr. Edegbele clarified that the deceased was not an indigene of the Ugborodo community and suggested the death may have resulted from “friendly fire” among the invaders. He vehemently denied allegations linking the death to Ogidigben residents, noting that the community was largely unarmed and displaced at the time of the killing.
The leadership of Ogidigben has called for the immediate deployment of neutral, professional security forces to the Ugborodo federating units—including Ode-Ugborodo, Ajudaibo, Madangho, and Ijaghala—to restore peace and prevent further hostilities. Furthermore, they are demanding an independent and transparent investigation into the roots of the violence, the destruction of property, and potential political or security complicity.
Mr. Edegbele reaffirmed that the Ugborodo people remain culturally and historically unified under the sovereign authority of the Olu of Warri. He alleged that the current unrest was deliberately orchestrated by individuals seeking to coerce the community into rejecting the monarch’s traditional overlordship. He also dissociated the community leadership from a recent unauthorized protest at the Chevron Escravos Tank Farm, maintaining that the Ugborodo Community Trust and relevant traditional institutions remain the only recognized bodies for managing the federation’s collective interests.