By Victor Lewis
The Senator representing Delta Central in the National Assembly, Distinguished Senator Ede Dafinone, has sounded the alarm that unless there is a conscious and deliberate effort towards a stronger unity, the Urhobo nation would not only be overrun by other nationalities, but face political extinction.
Senator Dafinone gave this warning while speaking on the occasion of the 2nd Edition of the UPU Ighelle World Conference held at the Urhobo Cultural Centre, Uvwiamuge-Agbarho, Ughelli North LGA, yesterday August 16, 2025, with the theme “Igniting the Urhobo Spirit: Urhobo Youth as Custodians and Catalysts of Change.”
He noted that the unholy attitude of selfish and greedy leadership prevalent among privileged Urhobo at the moment could only mean a certain lead to a definite stagnation of progress and underdevelopment of Delta Central.
“The unhealthy competition we often engage in, thinking I must be the richest, I must be the best, I must be the only leader, is defeating us. We must move as one. We must move as Urhobo. We must move as a team
“The change that Urhobo requires is so necessary, so deep, that unless we get our acts together now, today, I strongly believe we will be lost in the Nigerian equation, and even in the Delta equation, for good”, he admonished, stressing further that the attitude of, only one leader wants to be heard and seen, does not encourage the spirit of cooperation and collaborative effort towards development.
The national lawmaker insisted that unity, mentorship, and collective progress must replace unhealthy competition, noting that the present political landscape offers Urhobo a rare opportunity to develop, if and only if, the people could be united,
“Today, we have an Urhobo governor. It has come round again to our turn. There is no shame, and there is no sense of selfishness, in an Urhobo governor developing Urhobo land more than other sections of the state. This is the essence of rotation: everybody gets a turn”, he noted.
On his own mandate as senator, Dafinone pledged to leverage his access at the federal level for the benefit of his people, provided they present meaningful initiatives.
“My office gives me access to nearly every office at the federal level. If I am not deploying those instruments of power for the benefit of my people, then I am wasting them,” he reiterated.
Dafinone also used the occasion to call for economic and cultural renaissance and transformation, urging Urhobos to pursue prosperity for youths, traders, and business people.
He reflected on the preponderance of leadership and mentorship, recalling how he once prayed for a young mentee to surpass him financially.
“His being richer than me does not make me poorer. It takes nothing away from me,” he said, urging Urhobo leaders and youths to embrace collective growth rather than rivalry. “We must move as one. We must move as Urhobo. We must move as a team”, he emphasized.
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