By Jimitota Onoyume 

Itsekiri ethnic group, yesterday, again rejected the preliminary report of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on the ward redelineation exercise in Warri federal constituency, demanding a fresh one that would redress identified anomalies.

Read Also: Warri ward delineation: INEC acting within constitution — INC

Addressing newsmen at the venues of a twin protest, one in Warri South Local Government Area and the other at Excravos-Ugborodo, Warri South West Local Government Area, both in Delta State, the spokesmen alleged that the commission conceded wards meant for Itsekiri areas to their neighbours, adding that it was part of a grand plot to weaken the political and economic strength of Itsekiri nation in the federal constituency.

The statement by Messrs  Emiko Oghomienor, Ofoyeju Izuagie, Appearance Afejuku, Samuel Khalil, Ejeh Wilson and David Mamah,  said the Itsekiri nation would not hesitate to shut down oil operations across Itsekiri communities if the electoral body failed to redress the alleged irregularities in its ward redelineation report.

It also called on the National Security Adviser, NSA, to prevail on the electoral body to constitute a fresh body to review the field report, accusing those initially saddled with the responsibility of  compromise.

The statement said: “We, the Itsekiri people of the three Warri Local Government Areas that make up the Warri Federal Constituency of Delta State, are vehemently against the report of the proposed ward delineation by INEC presently in circulation. It should, therefore, be confined to the dustbin of history where such report that has the potential of leading to the complete breakdown of law and order usually thrown into.

“We further appeal to the office of the NSA to direct the chairman of INEC to set up an independent committee constituted of members different from the individuals mentioned above to properly look into the field report that the field officers of INEC did for fairness, justice and equity. The individuals mentioned above, cannot be judges in their own cause as such would be against the age long principle of fair hearing premised on the latin maxim, “Nemo judix in casuasua.”

“We see this as an affront, and an injustice to the Itsekiri people because of the numerous irregularities in the report by INEC. We observed with utmost consternation that the ljaw areas in Warri North and Warri South-West which originally have four wards each have been brazenly increased to 14 wards and eight wards respectively in their purported report while the entire Itsekiri areas in the same councils mentioned above with six wards each originally before the fraudulent ward delineation exercise, was unconscionably reduced to five wards in Warri South West and a partry eight wards in Warri North without recourse to existing official data either from INEC or other relevant agencies of government. 

“In Warri South, the Ijaw were given three wards where they had none before now, while the Urhobo which had only two legally recognized wards were now given nine wards while the Itsekiri that has eight recognized wards of the 10 legal wards in the council were made to retain eight.

“All these were done in order to completely exterminate the Itsekiri people politically and economically from their ancestral homeland and to deny them their clear majority status in Warri Federal Constituency of Delta State, their aboriginal ancestral homeland. We will resist this glaring injustice at all cost.

“Furthermore, if INEC wilfully fails or intentionally neglect to comply with the true picture of the field work carried out during the delineation exercise in the Itsekiri axis then, we would be left with no other option than to completely shut down the operations of all IOCs and indigenous oil and gas companies operating in our domain.”