Four Itsekiri communities in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State have threatened to shut down major oil and gas facilities, including the Warri Refinery and Obodo Flow Station, if the Independent National Electoral Commission fails to create a separate electoral ward for them in the ongoing ward delineation exercise.
The communities comprising Ifiekporo, Aja-Etan, Ikeren and Utunwa under the aegis of Ijala Communities, issued the threat on Sunday during a protest and press conference held at Ifiekporo community.
The protesters accused INEC of sidelining the communities despite their growing population and strategic contributions to Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
They insisted that the proposed delineation arrangement, which retains them under the existing Obodo/Omadino Ward, amounted to political marginalisation and denied them adequate representation.
Speaking on behalf of the communities, Pa Michael Domino said the demand for the creation of an Ijala Ward was both legitimate and long overdue.
“Our demand for the creation of Ijala Ward from the existing Obodo/Omadino Ward is a legitimate cause because we have the numerical and economic strength to become a stand-alone ward,” he said.
Domino argued that since the creation of Warri South Local Government Area in 1991, the communities had witnessed significant population growth and economic expansion but had remained politically disadvantaged.
He noted that the Ijala axis hosts several critical oil and gas assets, including facilities operated by Conoil and Seplat, the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, Obodo Flow Station, and multiple petroleum depots and tank farms.
The communities expressed frustration that despite INEC’s field visits and assessments during the delineation process, their demand for a separate ward was allegedly ignored.
They also questioned why some areas within Warri South were reportedly allocated multiple wards while Ijala communities were denied one despite their size and economic significance.
Warning of possible disruption to oil operations, Domino said the communities would resist any attempt to maintain the status quo.
“We can assure Nigerians that we will not shy away from shutting down critical oil fields and depots if INEC fails to allot the much-deserved Ijala Ward to us,” he said.
“For us, allotting Ijala Ward is non-negotiable. It is now or never. Otherwise, we will speak the only language the Federal Government understands—crippling the economy.”
Also speaking, the youth representative of Aja-Etan community, Tuoyo Ebigbeyi, threatened direct action against key oil installations in the area.
“We will shut down Obodo Flow Station, we will shut down the Refinery Jetty, and no vessel will come there. Anything short of giving us the ward will not be accepted,” he declared.
Other community leaders, including Pa Williams Ejegi, Mrs Abigail Tonukarin, Francis Eyifoma and Alfred Edon, backed the demand, insisting that the existing ward structure no longer reflected the demographic and economic realities of the area.
The agitation comes amid heightened tensions over INEC’s ward delineation exercise in Warri Federal Constituency, which comprises Warri South, Warri North and Warri South-West local government areas.
The exercise followed a Supreme Court judgment directing INEC to conduct a fresh delineation of electoral wards and polling units across the three councils.
While recent interventions reportedly eased tensions between Ijaw and Itsekiri stakeholders in Warri North and Warri South-West, stakeholders in Warri South insist unresolved issues remain, fueling fresh demands and protests over representation in the proposed ward structure.
President Bola Tinubu and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori had also recent intervened in the rising tension in the Warri Federal Constituency where the three tribes – Itsekiri, Urhobo and Ijaw – signed a peace agreement over the delineation battle.
