Itsekiri Leaders Urge FG to Probe INEC’s Warri Delineation, Allege Ghost Wards Exist in ‘Flawed Mapping’

…Condemns reported diatribe against Tinubu’s wife

The Itsekiri Ethnic Nationality (IEN) has called on the Federal Government to immediately investigate the technical execution of the delineation exercise for the Warri Federal Constituency conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), citing massive data manipulation, technical illegalities, and structural bias.

Speaking at a world press conference held on Wednesday at the Ubeji Town Hall in Warri, Delta State, prominent Itsekiri leaders declared that while they support lawful electoral reforms and compliance with the Supreme Court judgment (Suit No. SC/143/2016), the guidelines released by INEC on May 20, 2026, flagrantly violate the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act 2026.

Reading the joint statement signed by Chief Edward Ekpoko, Prince Yemi Emiko, Sir Amorighoye S. Mene, Alex Eyengho, and Chief Robinson Ariyo, the leaders alleged that independent geographic and cartographic audits revealed that INEC’s new mapping is riddled with profound anomalies designed to engineer a false demographic superiority for Ijaw areas.

The Itsekiri leaders in their presentation, said that specific data from independent experts exposed severe irregularities in the GIS mapping used by INEC.

According to the breakdown by the Itsekiri ethnic group, in Warri South-West LGA, out of 1,798 total polygons, 320 are submerged under water, 477 share duplicate coordinates, and 510 are located entirely outside the LGA’s legal boundaries—stretching into Burutu, Ughelli South, Udu, and Warri South.

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They argued that in Warri North LGA, experts found 99 polygons falling completely outside Delta State, stretching into neighbouring Ondo and Edo states, as well as parts of Ethiope and Sapele LGAs.

Also, in Warri South LGA the Itsekiri leaders accused INEC of failing to conduct substantive fieldwork in rapidly growing Itsekiri hubs like Ubeji, Omadino, and Ode-Itsekiri, omitting them entirely from the field report despite their massive populations.

“Several proposed polling units fall directly inside rivers, deep swamps, dense forests, and completely uninhabitable locations,” the statement read, adding that INEC had artificially lumped massive clusters of Itsekiri voters into fewer wards while inflating smaller voting populations in Ijaw territories.

The group noted that while sixty polling units each were used to create Itsekiri wards in Orere and Ugborodo, a mere seven polling units were used to create Ijaw wards like Bolou-Ama and Ewein.

The Itsekiri leaders also took a strong swipe at a section of the Ijaw and Urhobo nationalities—allegedly sponsored by the Ijaw of Gbaramatu—for launching a “media war of attrition” and using disrespectful language against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu.

“It is unfortunate that the Ijaw of Gbaramatu, who are the greatest beneficiaries of the federal government in the Niger Delta, are behind the unjustified attacks on the presidency,” the leaders remarked, stating that media propaganda would not force the Itsekiri to surrender their political space.

Addressing recent threats of economic sabotage and administrative disruption in Warri, the IEN warned that the peace in Warri must not be taken for granted.

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Recalling the historic Warri crisis, they stated: “We warn clearly – 2026 is not the era of 1997 to 2003. We condemn any threats to peace… We must be mindful of the words of General Ibrahim Babangida, when he warned that the drums of war are easy to beat but their rhythms are difficult to dance.”

While commending INEC’s visionary proposal to create two additional State Constituencies and one Federal Constituency from the current Warri Federal Constituency, the Itsekiri nation maintained that implementation must be flawless, transparent, and based on the baseline voter data from the 2023 General Elections.

To ensure equity, the Itsekiri nation put forward its “irreducible minimum” formula for ward distribution to include, Warri North LGA, 12 Wards for Itsekiri, 8 Wards for Ijaw (doubling the existing 6 Itsekiri and 4 Ijaw wards).

In Warri South-West LGA, they proposed 12 Wards for Itsekiri, 8 Wards for Ijaw (doubling the existing 6 Itsekiri and 4 Ijaw wards).

The community leaders called on the Federal Government to immediately investigate the technical execution of the delineation exercise, which they termed an “embarrassment to the nation,” and urged INEC to suspend reliance on the disputed fieldwork pending an independent, transparent technical verification

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