BY MICHAEL IKEOGWU/WARRI
THREE communities in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State have called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately reinstate them into the official list of communities following their exclusion from recent constituency delineation exercises.
The communities of Kusimi, Eweregbene, and Tekedor Kusimi issued a joint statement, yesterday, expressing disappointment with the situation.
The statement, signed by Mr. Newman Kusimi, Mr. Joseph Dedetolu and Amb. Clement Tekedor – opinion leaders of the respective communities, noted that historically, their communities had been part of Ward 1, specifically represented in units 22 and 27 in Warri South West Local Government Area, Delta State.
The statement read: “We the above communities find it imperative to come together in unity and peace to assert our civic rights and correct a grave injustice recently meted out to us by INEC. “Our communities are not mere settlements. We are constitutionally recognised entities with distinct histories, cultures, and legal status.
“Our existence is affirmed by judicial decisions, the National Population Commission and political and traditional institutions including prior acknowledgement by INEC. “We have always participated actively in the democratic process and contributed to the socio-political development of Delta State and Nigeria at large.
“This omission is particularly disheartening given that our communities had earlier agitated for the creation of separate wards, based on our significant population and voting strength which qualifies each community for such representation.
“To now see our names omitted and replaced with fictitious or non-existent ones is an affront to justice, democratic integrity, and our fundamental rights as citizens.” The communities called on INEC to recognize and separate electoral wards for each community based on their population and voting capacity.
They also demanded that relevant authorities investigate the unlawful exclusion as a violation of their constitutional and democratic rights.
While demanding immediate corrective action and public clarification by the electoral body, the communities appealed to the Chairman, Warri South-West Local Government, Delta State Governor and President Bola Tinubu to urgently intervene and address the injustice.
