By Gabriel Ewepu

ABUJA — The Niger Delta Youth Coalition for Peace and Progress (NDYCPP) has appealed to the Amanyanabo of Torusarama Piri, Elem Kalabari, King Asari Dokubo, and the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, to embrace dialogue and reconciliation amid a public exchange over the pipeline surveillance contract awarded to Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL).

The coalition urged the traditional rulers and other stakeholders to prioritise peace, mutual respect and brotherhood, warning that personal disagreements should not undermine unity among the ethnic nationalities of the Niger Delta.

In a statement signed by its President, Pastor Jude Olayinka, the group acknowledged Dokubo’s longstanding advocacy for the Niger Delta but said his recent public exchange over the pipeline surveillance contract could have been handled with greater restraint.

The statement read in part: “King Asari Dokubo’s courage and his long years of advocacy for the Niger Delta are not in question. But we think his recent public exchange over the pipeline surveillance contract involving PINL could have been handled with more calm.”

The coalition stressed that traditional rulers occupy positions of immense responsibility and should demonstrate patience, diplomacy and self-control, particularly when faced with provocation or public criticism.

According to the group, a monarch’s response to controversy should reflect the dignity of the throne and the interests of the people he represents.

“A crown carries a heavier standard. A traditional ruler is never only himself. He stands for a people’s heritage, their unity and what they hope for,” the group said.

It added that although every leader had the right to defend his reputation against allegations, the manner of doing so remained important.

“Not every provocation needs an answer. Not every accusation needs a public fight,” it said, urging the parties to rely on facts and avoid personal attacks or dragging respected individuals and institutions into avoidable disputes.

The coalition also cited the biblical teaching in 1 Corinthians 13:11 to reinforce its call for restraint and responsible leadership.

Reaffirming its respect for both the Kalabari traditional institution and the Warri monarchy, the group insisted that recognising one institution should not diminish the standing of another.

“The Coalition holds His Majesty, Ogiame Atuwatse III, the Olu of Warri, in high regard. We hold the Kalabari traditional institution in equal regard. Neither throne has to lower the other to stand tall,” it added.

The group appealed to Dokubo to refrain from further exchanges that could be interpreted as personal hostility towards the Olu of Warri or Chief Osahon Okumbo.

It urged all parties to embrace dialogue, warning that disagreements could deepen divisions if allowed to degenerate into prolonged public disputes.

“A king is measured by how he confronts injustice, yes. He is also measured by whether he can forgive, make peace and keep it,” the coalition said.

The NDYCPP further called for the protection of relationships and initiatives it said had contributed to efforts to combat oil theft and safeguard oil infrastructure in the Niger Delta.

It maintained that PINL’s pipeline surveillance operations should be assessed on the basis of verifiable facts, accountability and results rather than controversies involving individuals.

“Quarrels between individuals should not be allowed to damage relationships that are producing something useful,” the coalition said.

The group urged residents and stakeholders to avoid inflammatory commentary, ethnic point-scoring and the circulation of unverified claims capable of worsening tensions.

As part of efforts to ease the tension, the coalition proposed that Dokubo invite the Olu of Warri and Okumbo to his forthcoming coronation celebrations, where appropriate, as a gesture of goodwill and an opportunity to rebuild cordial relations.

According to the organisation, such a move would demonstrate that disagreements need not destroy relationships and that regional peace should take precedence over personal differences.

The coalition also called on Niger Delta youths to resist attempts to turn the disagreement into an ethnic contest, stressing that traditional rulers should serve as symbols of unity rather than be drawn into avoidable controversies.

“The Ijaw, the Itsekiri and the other peoples of the Niger Delta share one destiny. Our differences should bring us together and not pull us apart.

“Someone else’s progress is not our loss, and another kingdom’s achievement takes nothing from our own.”

The NDYCPP concluded by urging all parties to choose dialogue over discord, wisdom over impulse and brotherhood over bitterness.

“Let the crown speak louder than anger. Let peace win over pride. Let unity remain our strength, and the progress of the Niger Delta our shared work,” the coalition declared.