By Anastacia Eluwa, Asaba
Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has said that the commission’s compliance with the Supreme Court-ordered delineation of wards and polling units in Warri Federal Constituency of Delta State, would bring lasting peace in the area.
Prof. Yakubu stated this in Asaba, the state capital, during the Presentation of the Report on Fieldwork for the Implementation of the Supreme Court directive.
It could be recalled that the apex court’s ruling leading to the delineation exercise had originated from a suit filed at the Federal High Court Asaba.
On the way forward after the completion of the process, INEC Chairman represented at the ceremony by an INEC National Commissioner, Prof. Rhoda Gumus, said the report entailed coordinates indicating communities visited, noting the commission was expecting feedback from the stakeholders.
Reacting during the exercise, one of the 10-man litigants who instigated the Supreme Court ruling Mr. Dembo-Dembo Faoweikpodor expressed happiness over the conclusion of the delineation process.
According to Mr. Faoweikpodor narrated,
a few of us from the Federal Constituency, saw that things were not going well the way its happening, that the voters wards, units and the registration was fictitious.
“So ten of us took the bull’s horn and challenged it, so we went to court. We took INEC to court, because they are the constitutionally provided authority”, he stressed.
Highlight of the event was the presentation of hard materials on the delineation exercise to representatives of ethic nationalities from Warri Federal Constituency, received by Chief Victor Okumagba of the Urhobo delegation; Dr. Andrew Omagbemi from the Itsekiri people; and Mr. Joel Bisema, on behalf of the Ijaw group.
The report was presented to the stakeholders by the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in Delta State, Mr. Etekamba Umoren.
REC stated, “I present all the documents, the maps, the documents indicating all the coordinates of the localities and the communities that we visited during the fieldwork.”
The Commander 63 Brigade of the Nigerian Army Brigadier General Ugochukwu Onachukwu, and his counterpart the State Commissioner of Police Olufemi Abaniwonda, were among service and paramilitary chiefs who attended the presentation of INEC report on the delineation of Warri Federal Constituency, alongside traditional leaders and politically conscious individuals from the area.
