Ijaws back INEC on Warri Federal Constituency’s delineation, take solidarity protest to Abuja

A large group of Ijaw elders and youths gathered at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja on Thursday to express their support for the recent ward delineation exercise in the Warri Federal Constituency, which encompasses three local government areas.

The protesters, representing communities like Gbaramatu, Egbema, Diebiri, and Isaba, praised INEC for its diligent approach in carrying out the exercise.

Waving placards that applauded INEC’s efforts, the Ijaws highlighted the transparency and public endorsement of the process, affirming that the electoral body had acted responsibly in its duties.

Chief David Reje, the spokesperson for the Ijaw kingdoms, asserted that INEC had properly executed the Supreme Court’s directive regarding the delineation process. He rejected claims that stakeholders had not been adequately consulted before the exercise began.

Reje emphasized that INEC had initiated a thorough stakeholder engagement process with the Ijaw, Urhobo, and Itsekiri ethnic groups in the constituency. The Commission held discussions with community leaders and traditional rulers in Warri and Asaba, followed by visits to various local areas to ensure broad community support for the process.

He said, “Why we have come here is to appreciate you, to thank you for the good work you have done since 2022, after the Supreme Court judgment. You never jettisoned the judgment.

“You committed yourself to the rule of law and the principles of good governance and you really took it upon yourself to engage all the stakeholders of the nationalities of the Ijaws, the Itsekiris, and the Urhobos.

“You formed a committee, you went down, you were engaging them differently, and they were heavily represented by their leaders and their traditional rulers and at the end of it, you made out time to go to the communities of all the nationalities of the Itsekiri, the Ijaws, and the Urhobos.

“And by your fieldwork, you have been able to come out with a proposed document somehow, a proposed report. And we found out that some people are trying to become funny as if they were not involved in the whole process. We were all involved in the whole process, in Warri, in Asaba, and in everything. And everybody has given their assent to the process to be carried out.

“But I was so surprised from protests from some corners, particularly from our Itsekiri brothers, as if they were taking it on their back. Gone are the days when wards were allocated. Today, wards are given diligently through diligent ward delineation process, which is first of all carried out. So we have come to appreciate you, and to let the public know that you never did any job in the classroom, or in the bedroom, or in the room, the private room. It was a public work, a public assignment, demonstrated by mostly, going through the creeks, or the nooks and crannies of the three areas.

“Today, we have left our Egypt of political slavery to our promised land of political emancipation and political identity and dignity. Nobody will dictate a candidate for us, for councilors. Today, we have gotten our freedom. We have been set to make the world to know that the people who they termed minority are the true majority, which has been confirmed, which has been revealed to the whole world. The majority has come on board. The majority has come on the stream.

The majority has come for their political emancipation and political sovereignty. Our own is not to dominate anybody. Our own is not to set somebody aside. Let s all cooperate, work together as Nigerians, as brothers and sisters in a federal constituency to make sure that we build an environment that is politically endowed with the beauty of political democracy and freedom.”

Top INEC officials, including National Commissioners Professor Abdullahi Zuru and Malam Mohammed Haruna, received the protesters.

Professor Zuru thanked the Ijaw leaders for their acknowledgment and assured them that INEC would continue to uphold its commitment to democratic principles. He remarked, “We want to thank you most sincerely for coming here as one of the major stakeholders in this discussion. Thank you for appreciating what the Commission has done so far.

“We want to assure you as a Commission, we are dedicated to doing what is right as far as democracy in Nigeria is concerned. And God willing, we will ensure that democracy at the end of the day is what decides everything that we do.”

Christopher Wuruyai, the former President of the Gbaramatu Youths Council, also praised the delineation process, noting that it accurately reflects the ethnic populations of the Warri Federal Constituency.

He commented, “The Ijaws of Warri Federal Constituency have suffered injustice for 29 years, where wards were unilaterally allocated by the whims and caprices of certain individuals who had power to allocate wards to themselves.

“But today, INEC has done a diligent job. This job was done following the decision of the Ijaws to take INEC to court, the matter went to the Appeal Court and they followed up diligently until it got to the Supreme Court. Judgment was given that INEC should go back and make a proper ward delineation…

“We were all part and parcel of this process and we are saying that we will continue to ensure that INEC’s stand on this issue prevails.”

INEC had officially presented the updated political structure to representatives of the three ethnic groups at a stakeholders’ meeting held in Asaba on April 5.

According to the electoral body, Warri North LGA now contains 18 wards, with the Ijaw people holding 10 wards and the Itsekiri holding 8. Warri South-West LGA has 19 wards, with the Ijaw occupying 14 and the Itsekiri holding 5. Warri South LGA consists of 20 wards, distributed as follows: Ijaw (3), Itsekiri (8), and Urhobo (9).

The presentation of the delineation report was led by Delta State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Sir Etekamba Udo Umoren.