Yoruba Coalition Calls on Tinubu to Address Itsekiri Marginalisation in Delta

A coalition of over 130 Yoruba socio-politcal organisations has issued a warning about what it calls a deliberate and escalating effort to marginalise the Itsekiri people in Delta State.

At a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, the Alliance for Yoruba Democratic Movements (AYDM) said the Itsekiri are being pushed to the fringes of political and economic life in their own ancestral homeland. The group warned that unless urgent action is taken, the situation could threaten peace and stability in the entire Niger Delta region.

AYDM Secretary, Popoola Ajayi, said the issue goes far beyond the ward delineation recently proposed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). He described it as part of a deeper, sustained strategy to sideline the Itsekiri at all levels of governance.

“This isn’t about redrawing maps. It’s about erasing a people,” Ajayi stated.

The group pointed to the proposed ward realignment in Warri Federal Constituency as the latest example, claiming that it seeks to reduce the number of Itsekiri-majority wards while expanding those in neighbouring Ijaw and Urhobo areas. According to AYDM, this violates electoral history, demographic realities, and longstanding court rulings  none of which, they say, have been honoured.

AYDM also criticised the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for awarding pipeline surveillance contracts on Itsekiri land to Tantita Security Services — a firm owned by former militant leader Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo. The group called the move provocative, arguing that local contracts should go to Itsekiri stakeholders.

Among other concerns raised were the relocation of local government headquarters from Ogidigben, an community to Ogbe-Ijoh, an Ijaw community, the renaming of Itsekiri settlements, distorted boundary maps, and what the group described as a troubling silence from federal authorities.

The coalition has called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene immediately. Their demands include halting the proposed ward delineation, restoring the original 13-ward structure in Warri, and launching a full investigation into the role of INEC officials, particularly the Delta State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Prof. Rhoda Gumus.

AYDM is also demanding the cancellation of the Tantita surveillance contract, and a full review of past legal rulings they say have consistently disadvantaged the Itsekiri people.

To push their demands forward, the coalition has set up a 35-member committee tasked with engaging traditional rulers, lawmakers, civil society leaders, and regional stakeholders across the country.

“What’s happening in Warri is a national concern,” Ajayi said. “Today it’s the Itsekiri. Tomorrow, it could be any indigenous group. Justice must be defended for everyone.”

INEC has not yet responded to the allegations. Attempts to reach its spokesperson for comment were unsuccessful at the time of this report.