By Rita Enemuru, Reporting
A fresh crisis is brewing in Obitugbo Community, Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State, as some indigenes, led by one Professor Jim Omatseye and seven others, issued a pre-action notice against top military, police and government officials, accusing them of unlawful involvement in community leadership matters.
The aggrieved members, referred to as the Intending Plaintiffs, through their solicitor, Chief Robinson Ariyo of Robinson Ariyo & Co., alleged that the Proposed Defendants, including the Armed Forces of Nigeria, the Chief of Army Staff, and several police officers, aided the illegal enthronement of an ineligible person as the “Olare-Aja” (Community Head).
According to the pre-action notice dated 23 October 2025, the plaintiffs claim that the defendants conspired to foist a leadership arrangement on the community that violates natural justice, equity, and good conscience.
According to the notice made available to Stonix News, on Friday, they said the alleged acts amount to human rights abuse and a breach of the Armed Forces Act and the Nigeria Police Act.
The document stated that on 21 and 22 October 2025, some of the defendants, including the Warri North Local Government Chairman and certain palace chiefs, executed a “well-orchestrated plot” to install an unqualified person as community head despite several pending court cases over the matter.
The plaintiffs explained that the meeting where the plot was hatched allegedly took place at the residence of one of the named chiefs, with the active participation of some security operatives.
They said the move was made to “foist a state of fait accompli” on the courts hearing the dispute.
In their account, the plaintiffs claimed that the 13th defendant, Mr Justice Akuyoma, whose tenure as Chairman of the Obitugbo Community Management Committee (OCMC) expired in October 2025, had tried to elongate his stay by creating a lifetime leadership position for himself.
When the idea failed, he allegedly enlisted the help of others to intimidate and banish those who opposed him.
They further alleged that since the first quarter of 2025, the defendants had used military and police officers to harass, arrest, and deprive them of access to their ancestral homes.
They also claimed to have been prevented from auditing the community’s finances during Akuyoma’s leadership.
According to the pre-action notice, the plaintiffs maintained that the first intending plaintiff is the only person qualified under Itsekiri customary law, as declared by His Majesty, Ogiame Atuwatse III, CFR, on 7 September 2024, to assume the position of Olare-Aja.
The notice added that despite existing court orders preserving the status quo, the defendants went ahead on 22 October 2025 to establish new community leadership structures, the Obitugbo Community Council of Elders (OCOE), the OCMC, and the Obitugbo Community Development Association (OCDA).
Chief Ariyo, acting on behalf of his clients, stated that these acts amount to “deliberate infractions of the rights of the intending plaintiffs” and called them “illegal, unlawful, and contemptuous of the court.”
He further noted that the plaintiffs intend to seek several declarations, including that the actions of the military and police officers involved were outside the scope of their legal powers.
They also seek injunctions restraining them from further interference in the matter.
The plaintiffs want the court to declare that the Armed Forces of Nigeria and the Chief of Army Staff are vicariously liable for the alleged misconduct of Captain Monday Dauda of the Nigerian Army Base, Koko.
They are also demanding similar accountability from the Police Service Commission for the actions of certain officers in Delta State.
READ ALSO: https://stonixnews.com/onitsha-residents-celebrate-return-of-pipe-borne-water-after-25-years/
The document revealed that among those accused are senior police officers, including the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Zone 5, Benin City; the Commissioner of Police, Delta State Command; the Area Commander, Sapele Area Command; and the Divisional Police Officer, Koko Division.
In addition, the plaintiffs are also seeking a declaration that the conduct of the Chairman of Warri North Local Government breached his oath of office and made him unfit to hold any public office.
Chief Ariyo emphasised that his clients’ actions were not meant to destabilise the community but to restore justice and respect for due process.
He said, “The proposed defendants have, despite multiple entreaties, refused to renounce their actions or respect ongoing judicial processes.
“They have acted in disregard, disrespect and disobedience of the law, thereby violating the civil rights of my clients.”
The notice concluded that unless the defendants reverse their alleged unlawful actions, the plaintiffs would proceed to institute a full suit in court after one month of serving the notice, seeking legal redress for what they described as “an unconstitutional, illegal, and wrongful conduct.”
What's your reaction?
