By Jimitota Onoayume

The leadership crisis rocking oil-rich Ugborodo community in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State, took a dramatic twist, yesterday, as a former Executive Director Project of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Mr. Tuoyo Omatsuli and 17 other members of the community loyal to the embattled Egharaja Daniel Uwawah denounced a publication announcing formation of Ugborodo Community Management Committee, UCMC, to run the community for another two years.

The council of elders of the community had in a statement by Benson  Omadeli,  the Olaja-Orori of Ugborodo land,  Pa Anderson Ebiekutan;  Secretary General Ugborodo Community/Council of elders and two others  announced formation of the Ugborodo community management committee  with a total of 30 names.

The committee has Emmanuel Onuwaje as  chairman, Ofe Nene, Vice chairman, Prince J. Kaka,  2nd Vice Chairman and others.

Just when many thought peace had returned to the community with the formation of UCMC, some persons loyal to the embattled Egharaja  Uwawah,  dismissed the UCMC, describing it as illegal, stressing that at the appropriate time, a management committee would be constituted for the area.

A statement by 18 persons, including Tuoyo Omatsuli, Ofe Nene, Besidone Eyengho and others, alleged that some of the processes that gave birth to the UCMC were faulty.

“The mere manifest fact that the Eghare-Aja of Ugborodo Community, Eghare Uwawah never convened any such meeting nor signed the purported document published in the media under reference, makes the entire game a still birth, dead on arrival and of no effect, whatsoever, in Ugborodo land,” they said .

It will be recalled that the elders council had in a statement in January suspended the Egharaja Uwawah, a move some of his loyalists also dismissed as null and void.