CDHR Delta Rejects Agberen’s Chairmanship Claim, Reaffirms Samuel Edoso As Recognised Chairman.

The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Delta State Branch, has dismissed claims by Mr. Derrick Oritsematosan Agberen that he is the constitutional Chairman of the organisation in the state, describing the assertion as misleading and unsupported by the organisation’s constitutional and historical records.

In a press statement signed by the State Chairman, Comrade Samuel Edoso, and the State Secretary, Comrade Evans Orusi, the branch said it was compelled to respond following a publication in which Agberen allegedly accused others of impersonation and claimed there was a rival faction within the CDHR.

According to the statement, while every citizen has the right to freedom of expression, such freedom does not extend to the publication of falsehoods or distortion of verifiable facts.

The branch traced the leadership crisis within the national body of the CDHR to internal disagreements that emerged after the tenure of former National President, Dr. Osagie Obayuwana, which later resulted in the emergence of different factions.

The Delta State branch alleged that Agberen is aligned with a faction led by Mr. Folarin Yinka, which it described as a breakaway group from the original organisation.

The statement further recalled that during the 2021 Annual General Conference held in Asaba, Agberen served as Chairman of the Electoral Committee and Returning Officer that conducted and officially declared Comrade Dr. Prince Kehinde Taiga as the duly elected National President of the CDHR.

According to the branch, official records and the conference communiqué clearly document Agberen’s role in the election, making his current position against the leadership of Taiga contradictory.

The organisation also stated that Agberen contested for the office of Chairman of the CDHR Delta State Branch during the 2023 branch election conducted under the national leadership of Dr. Prince Kehinde Taiga but lost to the late Comrade Jonathan Giama in what it described as a transparent and democratic process.

It maintained that following the death of Giama in April 2026, Comrade Samuel Edoso, who served as Branch Secretary, assumed office as Chairman in accordance with the provisions of the organisation’s constitution and established practice.

The branch insisted that there has been no vacancy in the office of Chairman and that Agberen has no constitutional basis to lay claim to the position.

Responding to allegations of impersonation, the CDHR Delta State Branch said Agberen was appointed Vice Chairman in 2021 but was never elected Chairman. It urged members of the public to examine the available records and draw their own conclusions.

The organisation noted that records of the 2019 and 2021 Annual General Conferences, the 2023 Delta State Branch election results, and Agberen’s participation as Electoral Committee Chairman in 2021 remain publicly available and do not support his present claims.

The branch challenged Agberen to publicly state when and by whom Comrade Dr. Prince Kehinde Taiga was allegedly suspended or expelled, under what constitutional provision such action was taken, why he conducted Taiga’s election if he considered the leadership illegitimate, and the constitutional basis for his current claim to the chairmanship.

Reaffirming its commitment to the rule of law, constitutional governance, democratic principles and the protection of human rights, the CDHR Delta State Branch urged the media and members of the public to verify facts before accepting what it described as misleading narratives.

The organisation maintained that Comrade Samuel Edoso remains the duly recognised Chairman of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Delta State Branch, with its office located at 20 Deco Road, Warri, Delta State, stressing that “no amount of misinformation, revisionism or factional politics can alter the historical and constitutional facts.”