By Henry Umoru

ABUJA- AS the agitation for the creation of another state from the South East extraction and the South South geo- political zones of the country continues, the Obuzor of Ibusa, His Royal Majesty Professor Louis Nwaoboshi, has reiterated that the Anioma people of Delta State are historically part of Igboland.

According to him, the agitation for proper regional placement began in 1939 when the colonial administration created Nigeria’s first regional boundaries.

Speaking in Ibusa yesterday, the monarch said Anioma communities were wrongly placed under the Western Region despite being Igbo-speaking and culturally tied to the Eastern Region. He explained that the British used incorrect geographical markers in drawing the boundary.

In a statement from his office, the correct boundary between the Eastern and Western Regions should have been after Abudu in present Edo State.

He said, “The boundary between North and West is not the River Niger. The boundary between North and East is not the River Benue. So the boundary between East and West should have been after Abudu. We were put where we should not be.”

Professor Louis Nwaoboshi who noted that communities such as Ibusa, Aboh, Ogwashi-Uku, Ubulu-Uku and other Delta North towns have always been part of Igboland culturally, linguistically and historically, said, “We have been cheated since 1939. Our fathers have been agitating from that time. I am not a pioneer. The people of Aboh, the people of Ibusa, the people of Ubulu-Uku were already involved before the regions were consolidated.”

The Monarch who noted that he founded a cultural organisation in 1980 to continue the old agitation and to preserve Anioma’s identity, acknowledged the role of Anioma leaders across generations, singling out a prominent son of the community.

He said, “Fortunately, Senator Ned Nwoko is our son. He was standing here when we told him to go ahead. It is in his blood because his father was part of those who agitated in 1939, not from an illiterate family. These people have been championing the cause of their people from the beginning.”

He disclosed that the name Anioma was created to unify Igbo-speaking communities in Delta North after other Igbo areas such as Imo and Anambra had consolidated their identities.

The monarch said historical records support the claim that the agitation predates independence, noting that a 1981 newspaper traced the movement to 1938 and credited royal fathers from Aboh, Ibusa, Isele-Uku and Agbor as early agitators.

Professor Nwaoboshi blamed political reclassification for the identity crisis among some Anioma people, listing the changes from Western Region in 1939 to Mid-Western Region in 1963 and Delta State in 1991 as sources of confusion.

He rejected modern geopolitical labels such as South South, describing them as recent creations that do not reflect historical reality, just as he called for unity and recognition of the shared heritage, adding, “It is time they learn that we are one. Awake and accommodate your brothers.”