In my own view and from independent research carried out, and also from the consultation I made with some famous Nigerian scholars living within Nigeria and foreign countries, I have come to the conclusion that The Urhobos, are the Fourth largest tribe in Nigeria. Regardless of most of the unexplained and unjustified claims on the internet about The Ijaws being the Fourth largest tribe in Nigeria, we can unequivocally justify that truly, The Urhobos are the Fourth largest ethnic tribe in Nigeria after Three major tribes of The Hausas/Fulanis, The Yorubas and The Igbos.
One of the reasons why this fact is not readily believed by some, is the fact that The Urhobos, are one of the few tribes without a defined well-documented history. And this because there is almost an absence of European record in their history, despite their immense interaction with foreigners during pre-historic Nigeria. The Urhobos migration to the various locations they now call home, started at the end of the Ogiso dynasty (from 350 BC to 1092 AD). Their exodus was not like that of the Israelites where the movement was once and for all. In the case of The Urhobo people, it was various groups: each moving at its own pace, seeking homely territories. Hence, the twenty-four sub-groups that makes up the Urhobo nation, including Okpe – the largest of them all. So, with millions of indigenes and hundreds of communities/towns/cities scattered across Delta State and Southern Nigeria, and in diaspora, the Urhobo ethnic group is no doubt that one of the major ethnic groups in Nigeria.
It is being claimed that the Ijaws numbered 14million people, and are concentrated mainly in Bayelsa with a considerable number in Delta State and Rivers. They also claim the Ijaws are counted as 10% of Nigeria. That is the most ridiculous claim I have ever come across. How in the world did they get that figure? With 160 million plus people, they are claiming that Nigeria theoretically has in excess of 16 million Ijaws. When you come to think of it, based on current population records, it is believed that the population of the three States (Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers) combined has not reached 16 million, not to think of having 16 million Ijaws. The Ijaw themselves are considered ‘minorities in Delta State’. From what we can see here, it is obvious that either the Nigerian Census Bureau has failed to provide accurate population records and has resorted to deflating the population of certain States, or that the Ijaws are inflating their number for obvious political reasons.
The truth is that the Ijaws was never given the fourth largest tribe in Nigeria. It is all mischief, engineered and made popular during the Goodluck Jonathan era. Consider this, according to 2006 Census figures: Bayelsa (all Ijaws) – had 1.6 million people, add approximately another half a million for Ijaw population in Delta and Rivers, you will get a total of about less than 2million people. But the population of the Urhobos was over 2million, according to the same 2006 Census. So, what magic has now made the Ijaws become the fourth largest?
Apart from being the dominant ethnic group in Delta State, The Urhobos have other large settlements/towns in Bayelsa, Ajengunle, Owo, Ore, Okitipupa, Oro in Kwara and a significant population outside Nigeria. Apart from the Nigerian three major tribes of Ibos, Hausas/fulanis, and Yorubas; Urhobo villages and towns/cities are densely populated. The entire Urhobo-lands have grown over several decades and have joined together as one mega city. From Effurun down to Agbarho town, they have joined together. From Enerhen down to Udu bridge, they have also joined with Jeremi, Okpare-Olomu and down to Ughelli Main city. The Ughelli Main city has joined with Afieseri and Agbarha-Otor, and have connected to Agbon towns and Orogun towns. Effurun has also joined Osubi down to Orerokpe, to Eku and Abraka. Effurun has joined Ekpan and Jeddo, all in Urhobo-land. Effurun has also joined Ebrumede, Ugbomro, Otokutu, Ovwian, Ekete, Orhuwhorun to Usiefurun, and you can pass through these areas without going through any bush. Same with other Urhobo areas. Otor-Udu has also grown and has joined Otu-Jeremi, Iwhrekan down to Okpare,-Olomu down to Ovwor to Oteri then down to Ughelli Main Town. Ughelli Main Town has joined Ogor Towns and Evweni Towns and Uwherun Towns. These cities are real and can be seen by all.
We also have some Urhobo minority communities in Patani and Bomadi LGAs, and even in Bayelsa State. There are also a lot of factors to buttress this fact, one of which is the fact that under the defunct Western region, the Urhobo votes of the old Warri Province counted a great lot, hence the Urhobos were recognized. In the defunct Midwest/Bendel State, the Urhobo votes were quite significant, and former President Shehu Shagari got his Two-third (2/3) votes from the Urhobos back then. That population of the Urhobos has since quadrupled when we consider the present population.
On the other hand, if you visit the Ijaw and the Itsekiris towns/villages in Delta State, there are physically no significant population to back up their population claims in the books. But the Urhobo villages and towns are actually the ones that are densely populated with people. Today, they claim that Burutu LGA is the most populated LGA in the whole of Delta State. But what physical evidence do they have to justify this claim? Where are the towns and villages that actually make up this claim that, Burutu Local government council, as having the highest population in their book?
Unlike the imaginary and obviously imaginary population of the Ijaws, the Urhobo population is actually seen and not mere imaginary. The Urhobos do not abandon their ancestral home towns/villages for the big cities like the Ijaws are known for. The legendary Ibru Family is a good example, as the Ibru brothers/sisters that are Lagos based, are known to still have strong ties with their home town in Agbarha-Otor and Ovwor town in Delta State. The Dafinone family, though based in Lagos, are known to still have strong ties to their hometown, in Sapele Main city and this trait has made the Urhobos a very unique tribe. After the three major ethnic groups in Nigeria, the Urhobos are the next on line, when it comes to Nigerians that are physically seen everywhere around the globe. The only problem that has made this fact not become real in the eyes of others, is the evident lack of unity-of-purpose by the Urhobo nation, which is obviously caused as a result of few selfish elites who always selling their birth rights over plates of rice. These set of people, have forgotten all the efforts of our foremost leader, Chief Mukoro Mowoe (1890-1948), in trying to build a ‘united Urhobo nation’, as written by Prof. Obaro Ikime, who is one of the foremost Nigerian renowned historians of the University of Ibadan.
The crux of the matter is that The Urhobo population is real and not imaginary. If you visit all the high schools and Universities in Nigeria, apart from the three major tribes of Igbo, Hausa/Fulani and Yoruba, the fourth tribe with the highest number of students you will see are the Urhobos. When you also check every Government Office across the nation, the Urhobos are the fourth with the largest population, after the three major tribes of course. The human population is not something that is hidden, but something that can be seen. Even in Europe and North America, the Urhobos will always come fourth amongst Nigerians in diaspora that you will see.
Human beings are not the air that we cannot see, they are physical and tangible beings that can be seen and counted. So, in my own opinion and based on some research and my assessment, I consider the Urhobo people as the fourth largest tribe in Nigeria. It is just that the Urhobos have been seriously marginalized due to the greed and selfishness of some few Urhobo elites who do not think beyond today. They cheat and sell their own Urhobo tribe for the sake of today, even if it means just to become a Personal Assistant or a Board Member. Urhobos have served as Governors, Senators, Ministers, Federal Electoral Commission Chairman (FEDECO) now known as INEC, Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Chief Judges of a State, etc.
The Urhobos are also a very enterprising people who are knowledgeable and well-educated. If only our Urhobo brothers and sisters would set greed and selfishness aside, and ‘unite’ to address their rightful ‘population status’ in Delta State and Nigeria as a whole. We should not shy away from this reality. The Urhobo people, as a tribe, needs to sensitize our people in this regard. We urge that the right thing should be done.
Zik Gbemre.
National Coordinator
Niger Delta Peace Coalition (NDPC)
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