Urhobo leaders in Warri South, Delta State, have kicked against their exclusion from a high-level meeting with National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, set for the 19th of May, 2025.
The meeting aims to address lingering concerns about the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) delineation exercise in the area.
In a petition dated 15th of May, 2025, Chief Westham Adehor and Hon. Mark Ikputi expressed dissatisfaction over being left out of the talks.
They insisted they should be “granted audience to be part of this meeting for proper representation of our people.”
Their letter read in part:
“We, the undersigned Urhobos of Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, write to protest our exclusion from the scheduled meeting with the National Security Adviser on the contentious INEC delineation exercise.”
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They emphasized their role in consistently representing Urhobos at past INEC meetings and faulted the commission’s current report, claiming it doesn’t reflect the realities in Urhobo communities.
They argued that the Ijaw people mentioned in the delineation report are not part of Warri South but belong to Agbarha areas.
According to them, their exclusion began after they held a press briefing on the 2nd of May, 2025, where they publicly challenged the delineation process.
They reiterated their demand:
“We chose to be granted an audience to be part of this meeting for proper representation of our people.”