Prominent Itsekiri leader and businessman Chief Ayirimi Emami, has intensified opposition to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) implementation of the recent ward delineation exercise in Warri Federal Constituency, insisting that “there is no Ijaw community in Warri South.”

He vowed that the Itsekiri people would resist the retention of disputed ward names in the area.

Speaking during a gathering of the Ologbotsere family at Egbokodo, Warri South council area of Delta state, Emami said the Itsekiri nation was not opposed to compliance with the Supreme Court judgment on delineation, but rejected attempts to attribute Itsekiri lands in Warri South Local Government Area to Ijaw communities.

“The Supreme Court did not direct INEC to allocate our lands to them, neither did it tell INEC to allocate their lands to us. INEC are not town planners that will come and rename Warri. We will not sleep until that name is changed. We, the Itsekiri and Urhobo of Warri will not accept it,” he stated.

Emami also hinted at a possible recourse to the Supreme Court for interpretation of the ordered delineation should the parties fail to reach an agreement, adding “we will not be blackmailed to shortchange the Itsekiri.”

He maintained that the disputed locations being claimed by the Ogbe-Ijoh people were historically Itsekiri lands ceded to the Nigerian Navy and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), adding that compensation had been paid to occupants when the land was acquired.

Emami, who reiterated his commitment to peace among the ethnic nationalities in Warri Federal Constituency, said he would continue to support equity and harmonious coexistence among Itsekiri, Urhobo and Ijaw communities.

“I am from all three tribes — Itsekiri, Urhobo and Ijaw — and I am committed to the peace and development of Warri. I will not take what belongs to one and give it to another,” he stated.

His remarks echoed concerns raised earlier in a text of a press conference by the Itsekiri ethnic nationality, signed by Emami alongside Prince Yemi Emiko, Sir Amorighoye Mene and delivered by Comrade Alex Eyengho.

The Itsekiri stakeholders posited that INEC was selectively implementing understandings reached during President Bola Tinubu’s intervention over the contentious delineation exercise in Warri South, Warri South-West and Warri North local government areas.

According to the statement, representatives of the Ijaw, Itsekiri and Urhobo ethnic nationalities met with President Tinubu in Abuja on June 11, 2026, alongside Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and other stakeholders, in a bid to find a peaceful resolution to disputes arising from the Supreme Court-ordered delineation.

The Itsekiri leaders said one of the major issues discussed at the meeting concerned the nomenclature of three wards in Warri South — Bolou-Ama, Ewein and Ogbe-Ijoh Warri Urban — stressing that the Itsekiri and Urhobo delegations were unequivocal that the Ijaw ethnic nationality had no indigenous community in Warri South LGA.

They expressed concern that INEC had proceeded to retain the disputed ward names on its official platform despite the spirit and outcome of the presidential intervention.

“Recent developments indicate that INEC has proceeded to host and retain the disputed ward names on its national website, contrary to the intendment of the Presidential intervention.

“This action has generated widespread concern among stakeholders and has further heightened tensions within the affected communities,” Eyengho said while reading the statement.

The Itsekiri stakeholders consequently called on INEC to “immediately and fully comply with the entirety of the Presidential directives and understandings” reached during the peace engagements, warning that selective implementation could undermine confidence in the process and threaten stability in the oil-rich Warri Federal Constituency.

They urged security agencies and relevant authorities to act in the interest of justice, fairness and national unity, while reaffirming their commitment to peaceful engagement, constitutional processes and dialogue among all ethnic nationalities in the area.

INEC had yet to officially respond to the latest concerns raised by the Itsekiri stakeholders as of the time of filing this report.

Earlier in the ceremony, members of the Ologbotsere family observed a minute’s silence in honour of the family’s oldest man, Pa Higson Oporokun, who died recently at the age of 106, shortly before traditional prayers were offered by Emami for the family and the Itsekiri nation. (The Nation)

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