THERE IS NO "CORE IJAW" ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD, A WORD TO CONFUSSIONISTS

His Excellency,
Commander A.P.Diete-Spiff
Military Governo, R/S

The history of the world began at Mesopotamia, according to the biblical account that God created Adam and Eve,  man and woman and blessed them to "...be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth..."

 Genesis 1:28
After the flood that destroyed the whole world, Noah and his sons and their wives continued in fruitfulness and multiplicity because God also blessed Noah. And without doubts all the nations,  and tongues came to be and are all traceable to Adam and Eve.
The genealogy of mankind therefore does not exclude any race, color or creed, and that of-course indisputably include the Ijon people of the world, who are largely concentrated in Nigeria the largest African nation on earth and in other nations in the world.
Biblical information made it clear that Ijon as name of a people a society  and a community first existed  in the region of Naphtali in Israel until the days of the Assyrian King, Tigalath peleser who invaded the Ijon and other communities and took them away to Assyria.
 Looking at the map hereunder and reading through 2Kings 15:29 reveals that:

"In the days of  Pekah King of Israel came Tigalath peleser King of Assyria and took Ijon and Abel-beth, maachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of  Naphtali and carried them captive to  Assyria"
That was how the Ijon people were forcefully relocated to Assyria and from there they spread to Nigeria and other countries across the world. The Ijon people are the aborigines of one of the twelve sons of Jacob, the sixth son.called Naphtali. Ijon later was misspelled or poluted to either Ijo, Izon and Ijaw, and today most popularly Ijaw.
In Nigeria they are the 4th largest ethnic group, after Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba, and are largely concentrated in the Niger Delta region in a number of states in Nigeria of which Bayelsa is the only all Ijon (Ijaw) state in the federation, while Rivers and Delta States, also have vast lands and a large concentration of sons and daughters of the people of Ijaw.
Even after the historic amalgamation
of ethnic nations by Lord Lugard in founding Nigeria and listing Ijaw as the 4th largest ethnic group, the people under regional administration  were still scattered until the Federal Military Government led by General Yakubu Gowon, Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria created an Ijaw dominated state in 1967, called Rivers State and appointed her first Military Governor,  His Excellency Commander A.P. Diete-Spiff an Ijaw son from the Nembe, ethnic nation, who was in office for nine (9) years. Who laid a solid foundation that is indelible on the wall of mabels.
At that time, while Diete-Spiff was Military Governor of Rivers State, he was the number one  (NO1) Ijaw man while the rest humbly and joyously followed him. And in that very administration was another great Ijaw son also from Nembe.

CP Opuene Berena
1st Commissioner of Police
Rivers State Command

A Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, Opuene Berena, who stopped the arrest on alcohol (local gin) in that state, because he said, that was a means of livelihood for his Ijaw people.
That time there was no selfishness, no segregation amongst them, they knew that their survival as an ethnic group depended on their oneness, which was the platform on which they walked and were able to elect Ijaw sons as governors of Rivers State before the creation of Bayelsa State.
Chief Melford Obiene Okilo who hailed from Emekalakala in Ogbia  and Ojoko house in Nembe Local Government Areas respectively,  was another illustrious son of the Ijaw that was elected 1st Civilian Governor of Rivers State under the platform of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) in  1979.
He also shunned segregation and every divisive tendencies amongst the Ijaw people during his first 4 years in office as Governor, the reason for which he was re-elected for second tenure.
Chief Okilo's de-centralization policy in administration showed that he was a true son of Ijaw land, whose ideas were not parochial but broad based. He thought much less about himself, and much more

Chief Melford Okilo
1st Executive Governor
Rivers State

about the well being and prosperity of the Ijaw race. His administration geared towards improving Ijaw territories and communities informed his works of canalization of creeks and rivers and  reclamation of lands etc. as  people oriented projects to the Ijaw people whose lot fell on riverine areas.
The point to note is the unity of purpose and oneness of the Ijaw race all that while, no division, no discrimination though some Ijaw people who hated the progress of their brothers and sisters were kingpins of petition writing in Rivers State, that was before the creation of Bayelsa and separation, there was no such thing as campaign about core Ijaw or none core Ijaw.
When Chief Rufus Ada George  became Governor of Rivers State, all the Ijaw people rallied round him, because they knew that he came from the Ijaw Ethnic Nation of Wakrike (Okrika). There was no discrimination amongst the people.
Just like Okilo, Chief Ada George did not forget his Ijawness in all that he did, and in the political history of Rivers State, he (Chief Rufus Ada George) is listed as the 2nd Civilian

His Excellency
Chief Rufus Ada George
2nd Gov. Rivers State

Governor of Rivers State an Ijaw man.
When Sumner Dagogo Jack of Kalabari was appointed Chairman of National Electoral Commission
(NEC), his appointment was in line with Federal character, but the underlying fact is that his appointment was counted as one given to the Ijaw tribe  and he, Sumner Dagogo Jack as an Ijaw man from Kalabari, served the nation in that capacity.
It was because the Kalabari are Ijaw like every other Ijaw, Asari Dokubo from Buguma, Kalabari was elected  by the pan-Ijaw youth body the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) worldwide as President.
Asari Dokubo was not just President but the 2nd President of the IYC.

Alhaji Asari Dokubo
Former I.Y.C President

Are we talking about Chief Dan Etete, a former Oil Minister during Abacha's regime? He was appointed on the ticket of the Ijaw people. An Ijaw man from  Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.
Etete's home and office became a melting point for many sons and  daughters of Ijaw without discrimination of "Core and none Core Ijaw".
When Bayelsa was created, the first elected Governor, Chief D.S.P

Chief D.S.P Alamieyeseigha

 Alamieyeseigha from Amasoma, Southern/Ijaw LGA., there was no discrimination amongst the Ijaw people. No first class no second class Ijaw, there was nothing like Core Ijaw in the political dictionary of Chief Alamieyeseigha's time in office. Making himself a true Ijaw nationalist he earned the uncommon title of "The Governor General of the Ijaw Nation"

When Dr.Goodluck Joñathan succeded him, he did exactly like Alamieyeseigha while he was Governor and when he went to Abuja as presidential running mate and became Vice President, Acting President and elected President, Goodluck Jonathan's presidency changed the narrative of Nigeria's Political history, writing  Ijaw in the list of presidents of Nigeria.

Dr Goodluck Jonathan
Former Gov./Former President

Dr. Jonathan is an Ijaw man from Otueke in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa, and he never discriminated amongst the Ijaw people  The foremost Ijaw leader, Chief Edward Kiagbodo Clarke, the leaders of Ijaw National Congress (INC), and the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) can attest that there was no core Ijaw thing with Jonathan.
Chief Timipre Sylva who became Governor of Bayelsa State 2007-2011 from Nembe, Okpoama in Brass Local Government Area was a great leader of the Ijaw people indiscriminately and was given the title:

Chief Timipre Sylva
Former Governor,
Bayelsa State

"The Opu Abadi 1 of Kolokuma" Sylva who in the heat of militant activities in the Niger Delta took a bold initiative, entered the creeks and dialogued with militant leaders to accept amnesty granted by the President Yar' Adua administration is widely respected and honored by the Ijaw people
There was no mention of core Ijaw or none core Ijaw throughout his stay in office as Governor of Bayelsa State and even unto this day that he is the Petroleum Minister of State, Chief  Sylva stands for Ijaw unity.
But these days in Bayelsa State, especially amongst the political class a gospel has become the other of the day a gospel of 'core Ijaw and none core Ijaw' being preached by some faceless people, who probably do not know the history of the Ijaw people.
Then comes  the question who are those people calling themselves 'core Ijaw', who born them? How do they know, who told them that they are 'core Ijaw'? The present administration, led by Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson should take this divisive tendencies serious, and call those responsible to order, because it's only in unity and cooperation that the destiny of the Ijaw people could be arrived at.
It is the greatest height of insensitivity, political dwarfism and anti-nationalism for any individual or group of persons to plan and to embark upon such ill-fated adventure to slice the Ijaw Ethnic Nation to fractions or shreds with an unnecessary campaign of a none existent 'core Ijaw' thing.

Hon.Henry Seriake Dickson
Governor of Bayelsa State
Incumbent

Let us not forget or put under the carpet the fact that, the Ijaw people have their own Son Ernest Sisei Ikoli in the list of the founding fathers of Nigeria.
Sir, Ernest Ikoli, a veteran Journalist of Ijaw from Twon Brass  Nembe in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State ranked with Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe  and Obafemi Awolowo the founding fathers of Nigeria.

Sir, Ernest Sisei Ikoli
First Ijaw Veteran Journalist
Co/Founder of Nigeria

Ernest Ikoli was a key figure in the National struggles, and a pioneer leader in the Ijaw Ethnic Nation, the recognition of his role in the nation's struggle,  entitled his people of Ijaw which was the 4th largest tribe, pronounced  by the Federal Government  and listed as such and enshrined in the Constitution.
The unity and oneness of the Ijaw nation should be considered as of domestic importance and should be handed down from generation to generation for all sons and daughters of Ijaw to be in full knowledge that there is no 'core

Chief Otonye Evans Tubonah
Publisher/Editor-In-Chief
Golden Pen Newspapers
Based in Yenagoa

Ijaw' or  'none core Ijaw', but one Ijaw.