Urhobo monarchs, P-Gs shun UPU annual congress, dissolve factions

MONARCHS heading the 24 kingdoms that make up the Urhobo nation and their Presidents-General, PGs, weekend, shunned the annual national congress of the Urhobo Progress Union, UPU, and allegedly dissolved the executive headed by Chief Joe Omene as well as the splinter group headed by Chief Tuesday Onoge.

The UPU, which is the apex socio-cultural body of the Urhobo, had on Saturday, held its 84th annual national congress and awards of honours/carnival at the Urhobo Cultural Centre, Uvwiamughe-Agbarho, Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.
The event which used to be a beehive of cultural activities with representatives from the various kingdoms, was devoid of the usual hustle and bustle as 22 monarchs, the PGs, clerics and a host of other representatives boycotted the congress and held a parallel congress at the palace of the Owhorode of Olomu Kingdom, HRM Ogoni-Oghoro I, where the UPU executive and its splinter group were both allegedly dissolved.

Reacting to the purported dissolution of his executive, Chief Omene, said: “The Ivie (kings) are not part of the structure of the UPU which is made up of the executive, the council of representatives, the board of trustees and the branches.
“Look at those who are here, I, as the PG, the national secretary, financial secretary, publicity secretary and treasurer. There is no single principal official member that is not here, the others are miscreants and mischief makers,” he stated.

Speaking to Vanguard on the dissolution of the UPU executive and its splinter group, secretary of UPU president generals, Chief Kenneth Iwhuwhu, said: “The kings in their wisdom believed it was not safe for the congress to hold owing to the alleged ineptitude and maladministration of the UPU.