By Peter Onyekachukwu 
By Peter Onyekachukwu
The Itsekiri ethnic nationality has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of bias and illegality in the execution of the Supreme Court order on the re-delineation of the Warri Federal Constituency.
In a communiqué issued after a press conference, the group said it was not opposed to the implementation of the apex court judgment but rejected what it described as “fraudulent and biased actions” by INEC.
“As a law-abiding ethnic nationality, we are not against the execution of the Supreme Court order on the re-delineation of the Warri Federal Constituency,” the communiqué read. “However, we reject the bias and illegality associated with INEC’s execution of the said judgment.”
The Itsekiri leaders alleged that the technical review of the exercise exposed serious flaws in INEC’s work.
“The technical sessions have shown that the coordinates of the polling units and wards created by INEC do not correspond with the actual locations on ground,” the statement added.
They called on the Federal Government to urgently set up an independent Commission of Inquiry to probe INEC’s conduct in the re-delineation exercise, insisting that phantom polling units and wards were created.
“At the end of the Commission of Inquiry, INEC officials and other public office holders found culpable in this charade should be appropriately punished, to act as a deterrent to others with similar intentions,” the group stated.
The Itsekiri nationality also demanded the immediate enforcement of all judicial decisions concerning the Warri Federal Constituency, particularly the Court of Appeal judgment that affirmed a ten-ward structure in Warri South Local Government Area.
“This judgment has not been appealed, and its implementation is long overdue,” the communiqué stressed.