The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has promised to act on the grievances of Urhobo and Ijaw communities in Delta State over electoral ward delineation following a peaceful protest at its national headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.
The demonstrators, drawn from Warri North, Warri South, and Warri South-West Local Government Areas, demanded the immediate implementation of a Supreme Court judgement delivered on December 2, 2022, which ordered the delineation of electoral wards and polling units in the Warri Federal Constituency.
In a petition submitted to INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, and signed by 16 representatives, the protesters condemned the ongoing voter registration in their constituency without the proper electoral structures in place.
“We can no longer wait while our democratic rights, guaranteed by the constitution and reaffirmed by the Supreme Court judgment, are being eroded,” the petition read.
The petitioners urged INEC to “immediately release and implement the report painstakingly embarked upon by stakeholders,” warning that they “shall not idly stand by and watch our democratic rights and franchise fretted away.”
While commending INEC for earlier efforts to produce proposed registration areas and polling units, they accused the commission of unnecessary delays.
“We are fully abreast with 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,” the petition stated.
The protesters further insisted, “We decided to travel from Warri Federal Constituency to draw your attention to our plight and to let you know that we will not allow any institutions or external influences and pressures to allow our inalienable rights to be petered away… We will continue to occupy your premises until our fundamental human rights to vote and be voted for are restored to us.”
Receiving the petition on behalf of the commission, INEC National Commissioner, Prof. Abdullahi Zuru, commended the protesters for their peaceful conduct.
“I want to thank you sincerely for this peaceful approach to handling these issues,” he said. “You have read through your submission, and the people here have heard what you have said. I will tender this document that you have presented to the commission. The commission will look at this and act on it.”
Reaffirming INEC’s commitment to due process, Zuru added, “There is no intention whatsoever to disenfranchise anybody from any democratic exercise. If we don’t ensure that every Nigerian participates, then we are failing in our duty — and that we will not do.”
Speaking for the protesters, Ijaw leader David Jere from Warri North lamented INEC’s inaction months after the delineation process was reportedly concluded.
“Today we have been waiting, and you have commenced the voter registration exercise. For Ijaws and Urhobos, we don’t have wards and units to register. So we came here to tell you to release the final reports of your exercise, so that we can go and participate in the ongoing CVR,” Jere said.
Another protester emphasised the legal dimension of the dispute, “With due respect, sir, in the eyes of the law, there is no existing ward or unit in Warri Federal Constituency at all — by virtue of the December 2nd judgment delivered by the Supreme Court.”
Recall that the Supreme Court had directed INEC to redraw wards in the constituency over claims of imbalance and underrepresentation. Following the ruling, INEC began stakeholder consultations in February 2023 and concluded fieldwork by July 2024. A draft delineation report was presented in Warri on April 4, 2025, but the commission later clarified that no final decision had been made.
“Contrary to the speculations making the rounds, the commission is yet to take a final decision on the delineation of wards in the Warri Federal Constituency,” INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education, Sam Olumekun, said in a statement dated April 10.
As nationwide voter registration gathers momentum, however, the Urhobo and Ijaw communities argued they risk being sidelined without the completion of the delineation exercise, a situation they say violates both constitutional rights and the Supreme Court judgment.
Prof. Zuru, in closing, assured the communities that their grievances would be presented to the full commission. “We will get back to you,” he said.
LEADERSHIP reports that the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise began online on August 18, with physical registration following on August 25.
