{"id":5010,"date":"2025-11-13T13:44:16","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T13:44:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/11\/13\/open-letter-to-the-senate-of-the-federal-republic-of-nigeria-call-to-reject-the-petition-and-motion-before-the-senate-on-inecs-ward-delineation-in-warri-federal-constituency-and-to-uphold-th\/"},"modified":"2025-11-13T13:44:16","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T13:44:16","slug":"open-letter-to-the-senate-of-the-federal-republic-of-nigeria-call-to-reject-the-petition-and-motion-before-the-senate-on-inecs-ward-delineation-in-warri-federal-constituency-and-to-uphold-th","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coastaltimes.com.ng\/index.php\/2025\/11\/13\/open-letter-to-the-senate-of-the-federal-republic-of-nigeria-call-to-reject-the-petition-and-motion-before-the-senate-on-inecs-ward-delineation-in-warri-federal-constituency-and-to-uphold-th\/","title":{"rendered":"OPEN LETTER TO THE SENATE OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, CALL TO REJECT THE PETITION AND MOTION BEFORE THE SENATE ON INEC\u2019S WARD DELINEATION IN WARRI FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY AND TO UPHOLD THE SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Uche Alvin<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

OPEN LETTER TO THE SENATE OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
A CALL TO REJECT THE PETITION AND MOTION BEFORE THE SENATE ON INEC\u2019S WARD DELINEATION IN WARRI FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY AND TO UPHOLD THE SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your Excellency,
Distinguished Senate President and Honourable Members of the Senate,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We write to you as Concerned Stakeholders of the Warri Federal Constituency who believes in the sanctity of the rule of law, the independence of our institutions and the future of our democracy.
Today, we call on the Senate to rise above politics and reject the purported petition and motion seeking to halt or question the Independent National Electoral Commission\u2019s (INEC) ward delineation exercise in the Warri Federal Constituency of Delta State.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is not just an administrative issue. It is a constitutional matter, already settled by the Supreme Court of Nigeria in Hon. George Timinimi & Others v. INEC (SC.413\/2016). The judgment of the Supreme Court is not a suggestion; it is binding and final under Section 287(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). INEC is legally bound to finalise this delineation and no authority, including the Senate can lawfully interfere with that process.
As the Court famously stated in Adegoke Motors Ltd v. Adesanya (1989) 3 NWLR (Pt.109) 250:
\u201cWe are final not because we are infallible; we are infallible because we are final.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, any attempt to suspend, question, or investigate INEC\u2019s delineation exercise would not only violate the principle of separation of powers but would also amount to contempt of court.
The Supreme Court\u2019s decision is clear: no electoral process including voter registration or elections shall take place in Warri Federal Constituency until a lawful delineation of wards and polling units has been completed and implemented.
INEC has since concluded its fieldwork and is expected to release the final report. Yet, certain political interests, particularly the Itsekiri Nation, has been seeking to manipulate or delay this process through frivolous court cases, petitions and misinformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your Excellency, this is where the Senate must demonstrate leadership and fairness. The National Assembly must not allow itself to be used to directly or indirectly as a tool for political or ethnic domination. Electoral delineation is not a legislative matter; it falls exclusively under INEC\u2019s constitutional mandate.
The demographic and geographic realities in Warri Federal Constituency are well established:<\/p>\n\n\n\n