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A prominent Ijaw leader, Chief Reuben Clifford Wilson, has appealed to Ijaw people to stop what he described as “destructive attacks” on Ijaw sons and daughters appointed to political offices or awarded federal contracts.
Chief Wilson, who is also the founder of Pastor Reuben Initiative for Good Leadership and Accountability and a member of the Governing Council, University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, stressed that while criticism is part of democracy, there is a difference between constructive criticism and attacks “fueled by anger, jealousy, or political rivalry”.
He expressed his dismay in an open letter addressed to “Ijaw brothers and sisters, and sent to newsmen on Thursday in Yenagoa.
Chief Wilson said the growing trend of hostility toward Ijaw appointees weakens the ethnic group’s collective voice and reduces opportunities for the Ijaw nation.
“As a people, we must understand that no nation, ethnic group, or community progresses by pulling down its own,” Wilson said. “Leadership appointments and opportunities at the federal level should not become reasons for bitterness, envy, or division among us.”
“When we constantly discredit our own people before outsiders, we weaken our collective voice and reduce the chances of more opportunities coming to the Ijaw nation,” he said.
He urged Ijaws to encourage and guide appointees rather than resort to “insults, blackmail, or coordinated hostility,” adding that other ethnic nationalities “protect, support, and strategically position their own people in government and business.”
“They may disagree internally, but they do not publicly destroy their own in ways that damage their collective interests. The Ijaw nation must learn from this,” Wilson stated.
He clarified that his appeal was not a call to “silence accountability or excuse incompetence” but a call for “wisdom, unity, and maturity” in public engagement. “Let us ask questions respectfully, criticise responsibly, and support progress wherever we see it,” he said.
Wilson linked the issue to the broader Ijaw struggle for inclusion, recognition, development, and fairness. “We cannot achieve these goals if we become our own greatest enemies,” he said.
He called on Ijaws to choose “unity over division, support over sabotage, and progress over personal grudges,” adding that “the success of one Ijaw son or daughter should be seen as a step forward for the entire Ijaw nation.”
The statement ended with prayers for the peace, dignity, and advancement of the Ijaw people, the Niger Delta, and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
