Urhobos in Warri Federal Constituency Appeal to INEC to Honour Supreme Court Ruling on Delineation Exercise
..…Urge Gov Oborevwori to Intervene Against Illegality
The Urhobo ethnic nationality within the Warri Federal Constituency, which spans Warri South, Warri South West, and Warri North local government area in Delta State, has made a fervent appeal to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to faithfully implement the Supreme Court judgment mandating a delineation exercise in the area, while sternly warning against any steps that could erode the sanctity of the rule of law in this politically charged oil-rich zone.
In a statement dated February 17, 2026, signed by the group leader, Hon. Mark Ikpuri and made available to Chief Mathias Olowu, Media Consultant to the Urhobos in Warri, the community pointed out that INEC had carried out the delineation exercise more than a year ago yet inexplicably refused to release the results, thereby grinding the entire process to a halt and leaving the commission in direct defiance of the apex court’s binding directive that demands immediate action and public disclosure.
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Deepening their concerns, the Urhobos lambasted INEC’s apparent complicity in the All Progressives Congress (APC) ward congress slated for today, February 18, 2026, branding it an outright illegality that brazenly violates the Supreme Court’s clear injunction against any electoral activities in the Warri Federal Constituency until the delineation results are officially gazetted and made available to all stakeholders.
They contended that pushing ahead with such proceedings not only mocks the authority of the judiciary but also threatens to inflame long-simmering ethnic tensions and disenfranchise entire communities in this resource-endowed region, where unresolved boundary issues have repeatedly ignited fierce disputes among indigenous groups like the Urhobos, Itsekiris, and Ijaws.
The group issued a grim reminder to the Delta State Government about the catastrophic Warri crisis of 1999 that later engulfed the entire Niger Delta, triggered by a perceived government attempt to tilt the scales in favour of the Itsekiri ethnic group at the expense of others, particularly the Ijaw, asking rhetorically why history must repeat itself through efforts to empower a tribe whose population barely fills a local government area while allowing it to dominate its neighbours.
Urhobos in Warri have summoned INEC to forthwith suspend all involvement in the congress, insisting that the electoral umpire must place unwavering compliance with judicial orders above narrow political interests to safeguard the core tenets of democracy in Nigeria.
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In a separate but equally impassioned plea to Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, the group called on him to step in decisively, distancing his administration from an whiff of endorsement for these irregularities and cautioning that entanglement in such matters could irreparably stain his legacy as a governor dedicated to justice, equity, and the rule of law.
They beseeched him not to be painted as abetting the oppression of his own Urhobo kin in the Warri areas, urging his government to lead the charge for fairness by compelling INEC to wrap up the delineation exercise without further procrastination, thereby promoting lasting peace, inclusivity, and harmony among the state’s diverse ethnic communities.
