Warri Federal Constituency: Ijaws, Urhobos storm INEC

The cold war between the three dominant ethnic groups over the proposed delineation of the Warri Federal Constituency, arising from the Supreme Court judgement, has continued to fester despite appeals by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

On Tuesday, stakeholders of Ijaw and Urhobo extraction stormed the INEC office, demanding the implementation of the final report on the apex court judgement concerning the fresh delineation of Registration Areas and ward units in the Warri Federal Constituency.

The protesters, who displayed placards with inscriptions such as “Warri Federal Constituency: No Wards and Units for CVR” and “CVR today, a political fraud in Warri Federal Constituency,” insisted that the Commission must implement the report of its own exercise.

Addressing journalists, Dr Joel Bisina, who read a prepared speech, expressed strong reservations about the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) in the Warri Federal Constituency without the implementation of the delineation exercise, which had been agreed with stakeholders.

Dismissing the CVR as an affront to the judiciary, the Ijaws and Urhobos called for the immediate release and implementation of the report on the delineation of the Federal Constituency.

The statement read in part: “We want to use this medium to appreciate you and the Commission for the painstaking field exercise carried out, which produced the proposed fresh Registration Areas (RA)/wards and units in the Warri Federal Constituency.

“We are fully abreast of the legal attempts and undue influences from various quarters to derail or truncate the process. It was your resilience and resolved determination that made it possible for the proposed Registration Areas/wards and units to be publicly presented.

“A courage we salute and will never take for granted.

“It is this shared determination and resolve to do the right thing that has kept us patient for the past five months, hoping that you would conclude the process before commencing any future electoral exercise through the instrumentality of the ongoing voter registration exercise in the Warri Federal Constituency, which is an affront to the judiciary.

“We were invited to various stakeholders’ meetings by your electoral officers in Warri North, Warri South, and Warri South-West Local Government Areas, informing us that you have commenced the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise in the aforementioned LGAs using the defunct arrangement which collapsed in the eyes of the law.

“Our patience and cooperation are being taken for granted, as you have set machinery in place to disenfranchise us from participating in future elections. We can no longer wait while our democratic rights, guaranteed by the constitution and reaffirmed by the Supreme Court judgement, are being eroded.

“We decided to travel from the Warri Federal Constituency to draw your attention to our plight and to let you know that we will not allow any institution, external influence, or pressure to deprive us of our inalienable rights, which some are bent on undermining in the Warri Federal Constituency, the Niger Delta region, and by extension, Nigeria.

“We will continue to occupy your premises (INEC) until our fundamental human rights to vote and be voted for are restored to us, with a clear direction and information on where and how we should participate in the ongoing exercise.

“This trip and protest signal phase two of our commitment to non-violently restore our political dignity.

“As you may observe from the series of press appearances and protests on this issue, we have been under consistent pressure from our people, which we may not be able to contain in the future.

“INEC should immediately release and implement the report painstakingly embarked upon by stakeholders.

“We shall not idly stand by and watch our democratic rights and franchise frittered away.

“A stitch in time saves nine.”

INEC National Commissioner, Professor Abdullahi Abdu Zuru, who received Dr Bisina and his colleagues, assured them that the Commission would address their grievances.

“The Commission will do whatever is noble and just by all democratic means. It is our responsibility; it is our duty. That we can assure you. We will get back to you,” he said.

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