Some Ijaw leaders in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State have said that any attempt to subvert the recent final reports released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on wards delineation in the Warri Federal Constituency could truncate the existing peace in Warri South.
The leaders of Ogbe-Ijoh Community stated this at a press conference in Warri, where they alleged that some influential Itsekiris and prominent political figures were trying to frustrate the implementation of the delineation exercise in the Warri Federal Constituency.
The signed statement was read by Mr Denbo-Denbofa Oweikpodor on behalf of the people, some of who carried placards with various inscriptions like, “Remi Tinubu, Please do not allow another Warri crisis to happen.”
While endorsing the INEC’s report, the people described the exercise as fair, thorough and a reflection of the realities on ground.
INEC recently released the report on electoral wards and polling units delineation in Warri Federal Constituency pursuant to the Supreme Court judgment.
“We the Ijaw people of Warri South welcome the final report of the fresh delineation exercise released by INEC to stakeholders on May 20, 2026 in Asaba.
“The INEC’s final report, to a very large extent, reflects the reality on ground. We commend the Commission for doing a very thorough job.
“We also accept the delineation of the Ijaw electoral wards and registration areas into Warri South Constituency II of the Delta State House of Assembly.
“However, our communities deserved more electoral wards than those presently created by INEC. If we had four wards as far back as 1955, it is only fair for the number to increase decades later.
“We therefore call for the creation of more electoral wards and state constituency for Ijaws in Warri South LGA,” they said.
The people also said that it was necessary to correct “misconceptions” allegedly being peddled by the Itsekiri ethnic nationality concerning the existence and status of Ijaw communities in Warri South Local Government Area (LGA)
According to them, some Itsekiri groups were already spreading wrong narratives suggesting that the Ijaw people of Ogbe-Ijoh were not part of Warri South LGA.
“During the meeting which involved INEC officials and representatives of the Ijaw, Itsekiri and Urhobo ethnic nationalities on July 8, 2024, it was resolved that the Ijaw people were an integral part of Warri South LGA, based on available reports, physical communities on ground and existing polling units.
“INEC subsequently assigned field officers specifically to Ijaw communities during the delineation exercise carried out between July 10 and July 19, 2024.
“The officers covered Ijaw settlements that now constitute the newly created Ewein Ward 07, Bulou-Ama Ward 02, Ogbe-Ijoh Warri Urban Ward 12 and parts of GRA Ward 08,” they said.
