The alliance urged President Bola Tinubu and the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, to take urgent steps to prevent what they describe as a “deliberate repression and marginalisation of the Itsekiri people.”
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos State on Tuesday, AYDM General Secretary, Mr. Popoola Ajayi, warned that Nigeria risked reliving the violent ethnic conflicts of the 1990s in Delta State if immediate action is not taken.
He was flanked by notable Yoruba leaders including Wale Osun, Chairman of Afenifere Renewal Group; Chief Kunle Oshodi, President-General of Agbekoya; Mr. Thompson from the Oodua Peoples Congress; and the leader of the Itsekiri community in Lagos.
“We are compelled to call this conference due to the emerging crisis in the Niger Delta and the far-reaching implications for democracy and the rule of law in Nigeria,” said Ajayi.
“We recall that for about six years, the Niger Delta was thrown into armed ethnic conflict which threatened the stability of Nigeria. We do not want to see this happen again.”
The AYDM identified several issues as the source of escalating tension, including: The Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) proposed ward delineation exercise in Warri Federal Constituency.
“Political and economic exclusion of the Itsekiri people, the award of oil pipeline surveillance contracts in Itsekiri land to individuals deemed hostile to the Itsekiri community and proliferation of arms and alleged plans to provoke violence.”
Ajayi described the developments as “provocative and unjust,” warning that continued suppression could “drag the entire Yoruba nation into the crisis.”
“It is never too late to prevent a major crisis in the Niger Delta,” Ajayi stated. “We believe this can be avoided and should be avoided by all means, hence our decision to speak out.”
The AYDM alleged that INEC had manipulated the ward structure in Warri to reduce Itsekiri political representation.
According to them, prior to INEC’s changes, the Itsekiri held 10 out of the 13 wards in the defunct Warri Local Government Area, while the Ijaws had two and the Urhobos one.
They accused INEC of merging Itsekiri wards and increasing those of the Ijaws and Urhobos “through various failed litigation attempts and abuse of administrative power.”
“INEC has succeeded in diminishing the representation of the Itsekiri while inflating the political space for their ethnic rivals,” said Ajayi.
“What was not in existence before the 1914 amalgamation cannot now be reckoned with as indigenous in Itsekiri homeland.”
The group also cited INEC’s continued use of 12 “illegal” wards in Warri South, despite a court ruling upholding the original 10 wards for over two decades.
“INEC has shown a pattern of disobedience to court judgments in this matter,” Ajayi said, “and that constitutes an existential threat to the rule of law.”
AYDM called on President Tinubu to summon INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, for an explanation of the controversial delineation and to initiate a Commission of Inquiry to investigate INEC’s actions in the Warri Federal Constituency.
The coalition also urged the withdrawal of pipeline protection contracts awarded to Tantita Security Services Ltd, a company owned by ex-militant Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo.
“This award is an insult to the Itsekiri people and has already led to widespread intimidation, including armed invasions of spiritual sites and unlawful arrests,” Ajayi said.
They demanded the reassignment of such contracts to “competent Itsekiri firms,” in line with the Petroleum Industry Act.
The group also called for investigations by the DSS, EFCC, ICPC, and Nigerian Police into INEC officials and political figures accused of manipulating ward boundaries and undermining the Itsekiri identity.
“We urge the President to direct INEC to revert to the original 13-ward structure in the defunct Warri Local Government Area,” said Ajayi.
“We also demand that the National Boundary Commission correct the falsified gazetted boundaries and illegal renaming of Itsekiri communities.”
The AYDM emphasised the historic and cultural unity of the Yoruba and Itsekiri people, stating that the current situation threatens not just the Itsekiri but the collective identity of all Yoruba-speaking communities.
“The Yorubas, Igbos, Hausas, and others all have ancestral lands with recognised administrative structures,” Ajayi noted.
“How would any of them feel if wards were created in their homelands and named after settlers?”
The coalition pointed to past legal victories by the Itsekiri, including Supreme Court decisions, as evidence of consistent institutional disregard for their rights.
“This is as simple as obeying all the Supreme Court decisions for the past 50 years won by Itsekiri,” the group said.
The AYDM announced that a 37-member committee has been mandated to engage with political and opinion leaders across the country to raise awareness and seek resolutions to the crisis.
The AYDM includes over 130 Yoruba groups such as the Oodua Peoples Congress (New Era and Reformed), Agbekoya, South West Professionals, Yoruba Artisan and Traders Association, and Yoruba Communities in West Africa.
“We are calling for justice, not privilege.
“Let Nigeria do the right thing by respecting court judgments, protecting indigenous communities, and upholding the rule of law,” Ajayi added.
