Warri Federal Constituency: Proposal for ward delineation by INEC, deliberate attempt to yank off Itsekiris - Omadino indigenes

Indiegenes of Omadino Community in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, have described the recommendation for ward delineation in Warri Federal Constituency, which was recently released by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as deliberate attempt to yank off Itsekiris from their God-given land and give political prominence to the Ijaws and Urhobos living in Warri.

Our Principal Correspondent, reports that Omadino indigenes made their position known through the community’s Chief Priest, Roland Yomere, during a media briefing held at Omadino, Warri, Monday April 14.

They demanded creation of five wards for Omadino community and called on the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu and his Board of Directors, to as a matter of urgency, address their demands.  

The Omadino Community, frowned at the proposed creation of Okerenkoko Ward and the composition of Egwa Ward, describing it as aberration.

Here is the press statement of Omadino community as read by Chief Priest Roland Yomere;

"We, the leaders and people of Omadino Community have convened this Press Conference particularly for the attention of the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu and his Board of Directors, as well as the general public, particularly as it pertains to the recently released and very vexatious proposal of 4th April, 2025, for the delineation of the Warri Federal Constituency by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

"As you are already aware, the Supreme Court of Nigeria, in the year 2022, gave an Order compelling INEC to embark on a fresh Delineation of all the ELECTORAL WARDS and POLLING UNITS in the Warri Federal Constituency comprising of the 3 LGAs of  Warri North, Warri South and Warri South West LGAs of Delta State.

"It must be noted that the suit leading to this Supreme Court Order of 2022 was not an Appeal against any previous court judgements in Warri, and therefore cannot be used as a pretext to disregard previous court judgements over portions of the Warri Federal Constituency, some even supreme Court judgements which are in favour of Omadino Community, and the larger Itsekiri ethnicity.

"Any implementation of the Supreme Court Order therefore, that will not take into cognizance of previous Orders of the same Supreme Court can only therefore be seen as an attempt to legalize illegality in the Warri Federal Constituency, and same will be resisted.

 "It will interest you to note that For over 21 years, beginning from 2003, there was the judgment in Suit No. FHC/B/109/97 – Dr. Joseph Otumara & 8 Ors. v. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) & 4 Ors in favour of the Itsekiri people on the Ward structure and number in Warri South Local Government Area which said judgment declared 12 Wards illegal and 10 Wards legal, and up till this moment, INEC never implemented that judgment, while at same time pretending to be a law abiding Commission that want to now implement a Supreme Court Order, and tactically doing same to shortchange Omadino Community and the larger Itsekiri ethnicity politically.

"For the avoidance of any doubts, there is no where in the said supreme Court Order of 2022 that empowered INEC to disregard previous court Orders or Judgements granted by courts of competent jurisdictions, and INEC should therefore not be seen to be selective in the implementation of Court Orders, some of which were even directed at same INEC.

"Take note that the Supreme Court never Ordered INEC to embark on boundary adjustments or creation of communities where they never existed, even over territories that have been litigated over, up to same Supreme Court. Neither did the court Order translate or empower INEC to yank away our lands and accredit same to the Ijaws or Urhobo ethnicities of Warri Federal Constituency.

"The Supreme Court never Ordered INEC to make itself a pawn in the hands of those who consider the Itsekiri ethnicity as their enemies, neither did the supreme Court Order INEC to be a party to the desperate attempt by our neighbours and customary tenants to dominate the Itsekiri people in their own and only homeland.

"A careful perusal of the vexatious INEC proposal would reveal the deliberate yanking of Polling Units and territories adjudicated to be Itsekiri lands, and creating and crediting Wards within same to placate the ego of the Gbaramatu Ijaws people. This can be seen as in the case of Bolou-Ama, Ewein and Ogbe-Ijaw Warri Wards proposed within Warri South LGA. Similar pattern can be observed across the other parts of the Warri Federal Constituency.

"In a similar vein, Polling Units within Omadino territories, particularly those in Ukpokiti and Oteghele were systematically yanked from Obodo/Omadino Ward, and credited to the Urhobos political influence in far away Ogunu/Ekurede Urhobo Ward in Warri Urban, all in a bid to bring our lands outside our political influence.

"We have observed that in the selective implementation of Court judgements by INEC, territories within Omadino lands, which were litigated over, and over which the supreme Court had handed down judgements, INEC is now, in the pretense of implementing a particular Supreme Court Orders now completely disregards previous Supreme Court Judgements as if this 2022 Order of the Supreme Court sets aside all previous Orders of the same Supreme Court. In complete disregard of the decision of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in James Uluba & Ors vs Chief E. E. Sillo & Ors (1972) ALL NLR 2nd Edition Volume 1 Page 53 in terms of the name “Okerenghigho” versus  “Okerenkoko” which is a dispute that arose therein and was considered and decided upon by the Supreme Court of Nigeria in favour of the name “Okerenghigho”.

"The learned trial judge finally reached the following conclusion- the evidence of the Plaintiffs and their witnesses as to the founding of Okenrenghigho before me in this case is more credible than the Defendants' evidence and leads me to the conclusion that Okenrenghigho or Okenghigho was founded by the Plaintiffs' ancestors and that the original ancestor of the Defendants by name Akpata and his followers settled on the land with the permission of the Plaintiffs' ancestors. And I find that he accepted his position as their customary tenant. This I so find.”

“We will accordingly dismiss this appeal and affirm the judgment of Obaseki, J., in the High Court, Warri, in Suit No. W/30/1962 delivered on October 3, 1969…". We award costs assessed at N125 to the Respondents in this appeal”

"While the Supreme Court had adjudicated that the correct name of the community is Okerenghigho, same belonging to the people of Omadino Community, we now ask if the Supreme Court Order of 2022 also enabled INEC to engage in the renaming of our territories as ,'Okerenkoko Ward'in a bid to credit same to our customary tenants, the Gbaramatu people. We maintain that to reject the creation of Okerenghigho Ward, and propose the creation of an Okerenkoko Ward in its place, a name that the Supreme Court found to be wrong in suit No. W/30/1962 is an affront not only to the people of Omadino Community, and the larger Itsekiri ethnicity, but also a slap to the same Supreme Court, whose 2022 Order INEC claims to be implementing currently.

"The said proposal is in fact the cancellation of names of existing Itsekiri communities and their replacement with names of Gbaramatu Ijaw communities; in most cases against the Supreme Court judgments across the Warri Federal Constituency, and this is so glaring.

"In Warri South West, INEC seeks to create a Ward in Egwa, a territory adjusted to belong to the people of Omadino Community, and went ahead to carefully create new polling Units without registered voters in fishing camps where the Gbaramatu Ijaws people dominate, while completely excluding Itsekiri settlement within and around Egwa. Not one Itsekiri or Omadino settlement in and around Egwa got a new polling unit. Not a single one in the entire stretch around Egwa. This is a deliberate ploy to erase Itsekiri people from their own land. This is a pogrom.

"The supreme Court was very clear, specific and unambiguous in ordering the Delineation of Electoral Wards and Polling Units. Therefore, any purported Delineation that does not take into cognizance the registered voters in polling units and Wards cannot be said to be in line with the spirit and letters of the said Order, and same will be resisted.

"The INEC as presently constituted has demonstrated untoward bias against the Itsekiri ethnicity,, and thereby contributed to the integrity question suffered by the Commission since it's establishment more in the last 2 years than it had for close to its 3 decades since it's establishment.

"The population of Obodo/Omadino Ward alone far outnumber the population of the entire Gbaramatu kingdom put together. Yet the Obodo/Omadino Ward comprising of mega towns like Ubeji, Ifie, Egbokodo, Omadino, Obodo, and a host of many others all got lumped into a single Ward, while places like Otor-Itifo/ Macro with just 9 Polling Units and 5560 registered voters gets a Ward of its own, Oporaza with a total of 5495 registered voters gets a Ward of its own, even a certain Ewein Ward got created with just 2 Units and 1204 total registered voters, yet Obodo/Omadino Ward with a total of 30 Units and 15209 registered voters gets lumped into a single Ward.

Meanwhile, Ode Itsekiri Ward made up of total registered voters of 10939 is still lumped together in a single Ward. Worst still, Ugbuwangue/Ekurede Ward with total registered votes of 16495 gets a single Ward, while a certain Ewein Ward with just 2 Polling Units and 1204 votes get a Ward as proposed by INEC.

"What formula/logic will alot 3 Wards to 10850 registered voters, and then lump 10939 registered voters into 1 Ward, and another 16495 registered voters also gets just 1 Ward??? And another 15209 registered voters into a single Ward?

"What formula did INEC apply in this delineation exercise?

 "What logic or formular would justify the creation of 3 Electoral Wards (Egborodoje, Eruogwaran Otovwodo and  Igbudu) all for Igbudu community alone with a total voting strength of 19838 (Nineteen thousand, eight hundred and thirty eight) votes, and the entire communities in Obodo/Omadino Ward comprising communities like Ubeji, Egbokodo, Ifie, Omadino, Obodo, Ajaosolo and many other Itsekiri communities with a total voting strength of 15,209 (Fifteen thousand, two hundred and nine) votes, all lumped into a single Ward? Is it because they are Itsekiri communities?

 "We therefore fault the procedures adopted by INEC in its entirety, and call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and all other relevant authorities to call INEC to order, and impress it on the Commission to do the right thing in the interest of equity, justice and fair play. Anything short of this will not be acceptable to the people of Omadino Community, and the larger Itsekiri ethnicity".

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