Emami’s challenge over Ologbotsere suspension

 

After four years of courtroom delays and legal back-and-forth, Chief Ayirimi Emami says his fight to reclaim the revered Ologbotsere position of Warri Kingdom is far from over.

The Delta State High Court sitting in Warri on Monday adjourned pre-trial proceedings in the suit challenging his suspension as Ologbotsere to March 16, 2026, a development Emami described as another test of patience rather than a setback.

Justice Veronica Agboje ordered the adjournment after one of the defence counsels failed to file required court processes within time, a lapse that stalled the scheduled pre-trial conference. The court fined the defaulting counsel ₦20,000 and warned against further delays.

Standing outside the courtroom after the session, Emami spoke with visible emotion, insisting that the prolonged legal battle would not weaken his resolve.

“This case has been lingering for four years because of deliberate delays. They think I will give up, but I will never give up,” he told reporters. “Justice may be delayed, but it will not be denied.”

Beyond the legal arguments, Emami framed the dispute as a struggle to protect the cultural soul of the Itsekiri people, warning that the controversy goes deeper than personal ambition.

“Once you tamper with the Ologbotsere institution, you tamper with the Itsekiri Kingdom itself,” he said, maintaining that no Itsekiri family, committee or ruling house has the power under native law and custom to suspend a chief of his status.

His counsel, Chief Emmanuel Uti, explained that the adjournment became inevitable after the second defendant filed his statement of defence out of time.

“He served us only this morning, and the law gives us 14 days to respond. That action effectively truncated today’s pre-trial conference,” Uti said.

Uti further argued that the ruling house which purportedly suspended Emami lacked both legal and customary authority, stressing that “a co-chief cannot suspend a co-chief.”

“They relied on a so-called code of conduct, but we are saying that there was no such code during the reign of Ogiame Ikenwoli. The committee also does not have the power to suspend a chief,” he said.

According to Uti, the defence’s own witness, Chief Mene Brown, had publicly stated that princes have no authority over the suspension of chiefs.

“We have that statement on video. He clearly said princes cannot suspend a chief, and we will rely on it,” he added.

But counsel to the 7th to 10th defendants, Ame Oriakhi, downplayed Emami’s claims, insisting that the matter had already been overtaken by events.

“The suspension is gone. He was recalled and even offered another title, which he rejected. The kingdom has moved on,” Oriakhi said.

He added that a substantive Ologbotsere has since been appointed by the Olu of Warri, noting that the monarch retains the prerogative to appoint chiefs.

Justice Agboje adjourned the case to March 16, 2026, cautioning all parties against further delays and faulting the defence for failing to take timely steps to move the matter forward.
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