DESOPADEC Pioneer Chairman, Okirika Mourns Horsfall, Demands Immortalisation of Niger Delta Founding Hero

By Ezekiel Kagbala

The Niger Delta has lost one of the key figures whose leadership helped shape the region’s long-running struggle for resource control, derivation and development, the pioneer Chairman of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, Chief (Dr.) Wellington O. Okirika, CON, has said.

Okirika, the Bolowei of Gbaramatu Kingdom and widely associated with the campaign for the 13 per cent derivation principle, described the late former Chairman of the Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission, OMPADEC, Chief Albert Kurobo Horsfall, as a “founding hero” of the Niger Delta struggle whose contributions must be preserved in the history of the region.

In a condolence statement issued in Warri on Sunday, Okirika called on the Federal Government, Niger Delta states, traditional institutions and relevant development agencies to immortalise Horsfall through a national or regional institution, monument, development programme or other befitting legacy project.

He said such a gesture would ensure that future generations understand the sacrifices and contributions of the pioneers who laid the foundation for the resource-derivation gains enjoyed by oil-producing areas today.

According to Okirika, “A man who contributed to a struggle that brought billions of naira into the Niger Delta must not be allowed to disappear from the history of the region.”

Horsfall, an illustrious son of Buguma in the Kalabari Kingdom of Rivers State, was the pioneer Chairman of OMPADEC, the intervention agency established before the creation of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC. He was also a distinguished legal practitioner and a prominent figure in Nigeria’s security and intelligence architecture.

Okirika said Horsfall’s influence extended beyond his tenure at OMPADEC, noting that he played an important role in encouraging and supporting Niger Delta stakeholders who pursued a stronger derivation principle during the 1994/1995 Constitutional Conference.

He recalled Horsfall’s personal encouragement of younger Niger Delta leaders who continued the struggle, particularly his recognition of Okirika’s own commitment to the campaign for justice and equitable distribution of the region’s resources.

According to him, Horsfall had expressed satisfaction that younger leaders were taking up the struggle, giving him hope that the sacrifices of the older generation had not been in vain.

Okirika said the statement amounted to a symbolic “passing of the baton” from the pioneers of the Niger Delta resource struggle to a new generation committed to justice, equity, resource development and the protection of the rights of oil-producing communities.

The Niger Delta leader stressed that Horsfall’s legacy should be viewed within the broader history of the campaign that eventually strengthened the constitutional provision for derivation, arguing that the financial benefits accruing to oil-producing states should also serve as a reminder of the people who fought for greater recognition of the region.

He therefore urged authorities and Niger Delta stakeholders not to restrict the late elder statesman’s recognition to condolence messages and funeral tributes.

“We must not wait until all the pioneers are gone before we begin to tell our history. Chief A.K. Horsfall must be immortalised. His name must remain permanently associated with the struggle for justice, equity and derivation in the Niger Delta,” Okirika said.

He noted that immortalising Horsfall would go beyond honouring an individual, saying it would help preserve the historical memory of the Niger Delta struggle and inspire younger generations to understand the sacrifices that preceded the region’s present-day derivation framework.

Okirika also commiserated with the Horsfall family, the people of Buguma, the Kalabari Kingdom and the wider Niger Delta, describing the deceased as a patriot, elder statesman and one of the region’s founding heroes.

He prayed for the repose of Horsfall’s soul, stressing that the most enduring tribute to his memory would be to preserve his legacy, formally recognise his contribution and ensure that the struggle for justice, equity and sustainable development in oil-producing communities remains alive.

This version makes the immortalisation demand a central news angle and gives the story a stronger national/Niger Delta historical significance.