22/04/2026
PRESS RELEASE BY THE WAKIRIKE NATIONAL CONGRESS (WNC) ON FALSE CLAIMS OF OWNERSHIP OF ABONNEMA WHARF (GBELABO AMA) BY ONE TARIBO BENSON AND HIS ASSOCIATES
The Wakirike National Congress (WNC) has observed with deep concern recent reckless, baseless, and provocative claims made by Mr.Taribo Benson and certain individuals now unlawfully presenting and parading themselves as "Amadabo and Chiefs of Nyemoni lwo Ama.”These persons have falsely applied this appellation to Abonnema Wharf historically known as Gbelabo Ama, a well-established Wakirike waterfront community located within the Port Harcourt City Local Government Area.
These individuals, through radio broadcasts and social media platforms, have persistently sought to mislead the public, rewrite history, distort established historical facts, and assert unfounded claims over ancestral Wakirike land. Their actions constitute a direct affront to the Wakirike Nation, a mockery of traditional chieftaincy institutions in Rivers State, and a threat to the long-standing peaceful relationship between the Wakirike and Kalabari peoples. For the avoidance of doubt, and as this press release will factually establish, the land in question Abonnema Wharf, originally known as Gbelabo Ama belongs to the Wakirike (Okrika) people. No amount of false traditional titles or media grandstanding can alter this fact.
Okrika communities such as Iwokiri, Isaka, and Gbelabo Ama existed as far back as 1515. By contrast, Bakana (Mr.Benson's homeland) was settled in 1881 with Okrika acting as arbitrators. The 1913 Hargrove Agreement (Registered No.16 of 1913), which gave Port Harcourt its city status, listed Gbelabo Ama as one of twenty-five (25) Okrika lands and villages. Prominent Kalabari chiefs from Bakana signed the agreement as witnesses, thereby acknowledging Okrika ownership.
No Bakana chief, nor any other Kalabari chief, claimed ownership of Gbelabo Ama at the time or for decades thereafter. Abonnema Wharf "is a colonial-era jetty designation derived from Abonnema town in (Kalabari), reflecting its historical use as a transport point for passengers and goods to and from Abonnema, much like the Bille, Bonny, and Nembe jeties in the old Port Harcourt Township.The name is purely descriptive and does not confer ownership. The underlying land remains Gbelabo Ama, the ancestral property of the Wakirike people.
During a recent radio programme in Port Harcourt, Mr.Taribo Benson and his associates purported to rely on two instruments as evidence of their alleged title to the subject area, namely:
(i) the 1913 Hargrove Agreement between Okrika and Diobu; and,
(ii) the judgment of the Supreme Court in Chief Charlie King Amachree v.Chief Oju Daniel Kalio.
In the said Supreme Court judgment, the plaintiff abandoned ab initio his claim for a declaration of title. The Full Court, per R.J.B.Ross, Ag.J., reversed the lower court's ruling on exclusive fishing rights and affirmed only an injunction restraining fishing without permission on the New Calabar River. Critically, the locus in quo (Abonnema Wharf) was neither named nor described, and it was not referenced in the schedule of 108 villages, creeks, and ponds listed by the claimant, Chief Charlie King Amachree, in that suit. Moreover, the appellation "Angalapele Poku" Nyemoni Ama (or any variant thereof) did not appear therein.
Consequently, the said judgment furnishes no colorable basis for Mr.Benson's claim and, on its face, constitutes an embarrassing misrepresentation of a judicial pronouncement.
With respect to the 1913 Hargrove Agreement, that instrument expressly lists Gbelabo Ama as one of twenty-five Okrika lands and villages and was witnessed by Kalabari chiefs from Bakana, none of whom entered any reservation of title or counter-claim. No provision of that agreement, nor any subsequent judicial determination (including the Privy Council decision of 1956), has ever transferred title to Abonnema Wharf or "Angalapele Poku "to Mr.Benson, his privies, Bakana, or any Kalabari entity.
Accordingly, reliance on those documents is legally untenable and amount to a misrepresentation of historical and judicial records. The WNC rejects and condemns these false claims in their entirety.
For the avoidance of doubt: “Angalapele Poku”is the name given by the Isaka people to the dockyard near Bundu. The place is properly known as Amango Polo, a sub-community within Bundu Ama, and was mentioned as "Amengo " in the 1913 Agreement as one of the twenty-five (25) Okrika villages. It bears no connection whatsoever to Abonnema Wharf (Gbelabo Ama).
The Wakirike people remain the undisputed owners in fee simple of Gbelabo Ama, and no court of law has ever awarded Abonnema Wharf to Bakana or any other Kalabari group. A Rivers State High Court has recently affirmed Gbelabo Ama as the rightful host community to BUA, Crown Flour Mills, and other establishments, without any protest from Mr.Benson or any other group.
Boundary evidence from the 1950 Boundary Commission placed the Kalabari/Okrika boundary on the west bank of the Bonny River, thereby leaving Port Harcourt (including Abonnema Wharf) outside Kalabari territory. The 2009 memorandum submitted by Wakirike Chiefs to the Rivers State Government explicitly listed Gbelabo Ama as Wakirike land without any counter-claim. Further, in the several pending court actions in which Wakirike land owners are suing the Rivers State Government over demolitions, no Kalabari claimant has come forward-until now.
Mr.Benson and his associates have continued with provocations-unlawfully assuming traditional titles, making false broadcasts, and misleading the public, showing a clear disregard for history and public peace and order.
Accordingly, the Wakirike National Congress (WNC) issues the following warning and ultimatum.
To Mr.Taribo Benson and all his cohorts: your false claim of ownership over Abonnema Wharf (Gbelabo Ama) and your purported traditional titles have no traditional or legal basis whatsoever. The Wakirike people will never accept, tolerate, or recognise any such claims. You are hereby given fourteen (14) days from the date of this publication to take the following actions publicly and unconditionally:
1.Issue a full, clear, and unreserved retraction of all false claims made on radio, social media, or any other platforms.
2.Issue a formal written apology to the Wakirike Ethnic Nationality and the people of Rivers State.
3.Cease and desist forthwith from parading yourselves as "Amadabo," "Chiefs,"or exercising any form of traditional authority over Abonnema Wharf or any part of Wakirike land; and;
4. Remove all references to "Angalapele Poku," "Nyemoni Iwo Ama,"or any other fabricated name from public discourse forthwith.
Failure to comply within fourteen (14) days will leave the WNC with no other option than to take all necessary lawful steps to defend our heritage, including but not limited to:
1.file criminal complaints for impersonation of traditional rulership and false claims to property.
2.institute an action for trespass and seeking appropriate declaratory and injunctive reliefs.
3.petition the Rivers State Government, the Inspector General of Police, and the Department of State Services (DSS);and,
4.peacefully and lawfully resisting any further encroachment or recognition of Mr.Benson and his associates in respect of Wakirike land. The WNC calls on the Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, to urgently investigate the unlawful appropriation of traditional titles and the public dissemination of false claims capable of inciting a breach of the peace.
We also call on the Department of State Services (DSS), Rivers State, to take note of activities that pose a threat inter-communal harmony and public order. Furthermore, we call on well-meaning chiefs, elders, and citizens of Kalabari land, and indeed Rivers State at large to intervene and call Mr.Benson and his associates to order. We appeal to you all to use your positions of authority and good offices to prevail on Mr. Benson and his associates to desist from these actions and further provocations.
BE IT KNOWN that the Wakirike people are peaceful, law-abiding, and traditionally welcoming. For generations, we have lived in harmony with our neighbours, including the Kalabari, Ikwerre, Ogoni, and others-maintaining peaceful coexistence without any threat to public order.
NEVER THE LESS, this peaceful disposition shall not be construed as a waiver of our ancestral rights or entitlements, nor the surrender of any inalienable rights whatsoever. As the saying goes: “ the ground on which a man's father lies is not a market place where any stranger may erect a stall.
THEREFORE, the Wakirike people shall never cede our ancestral lands, dignity, or heritage to impostors or historical revisionists. The legacy of our forebears-who executed the 1913 Hargrove Agreement, prosecuted claims up to the Privy Council,and continue to this day to defend Gbelabo Ama demands steadfast and lawful resistance to these baseless and unfounded false claims.
LET THIS PRESS RELEASE serve as the final and comprehensive response to the false claims of Mr.Benson and his associates.The fourteen (14)-day ultimatum issued herein remains in full force and effect. Upon its expiration without full and satisfactory retraction, decisive legal and legitimate actions shall follow.
Signed:
David Solomon,
Chairman, Incorporated Trustees of Wakirike National Congress (WNC)
Mr. John Opuogulaya,
Secretary, Incorporated Trustees of Wakirike National Congress (WNC)
For and on behalf of
Wakirike National Congress (WNC)
Cc
Office of the Executive Governor, Rivers State.
Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command.
The Director,
Department of State Services (DSS) Rivers State.
National Human Rights Commission,
The Chairman,
Traditional Rulers Council,
Rivers State.
The Chairman,
Supreme Council of Wakirike Traditional Rulers
HRM, The Amanyanabo of Abonnema,
Major media houses in Rivers State and Nigeria.
Tuesday, April 21, 2026.
