‘We Will Not Be Marginalised’: Kogi East Youths Storm INEC HQ Over Ward Creation Exclusion

Members of the Coalition of Kogi East Youths Association on Wednesday converged at the national headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja to protest what they described as the deliberate marginalisation of their region in the ongoing creation of additional political wards across Kogi State.

The protesters, who gathered in significant numbers, expressed outrage that the Kogi East senatorial district—which they claim has the highest population and voter turnout in the state—has been excluded from the proposed ward expansion exercise, while the less populated Kogi West and Kogi Central regions have benefited.

Addressing journalists and a representative of the INEC Chairman, the leader of the association, Isaiah Davies Ijele, called out Professor Joash Amupitan, the INEC Chairman who hails from Kogi State, urging him to address the perceived injustice.

“We are here to express our anger and dissatisfaction for our brother, father and uncle, Professor Joash Amupitan, the INEC Chairman, over the deliberate marginalisation of Kogi East in the ongoing addition of wards to regions in the state,” Ijele stated.

The youth leader cited population figures from the 2006 national census—the most recent official census conducted in Nigeria—arguing that Kogi East’s demographic weight should have placed it at the forefront of consideration for additional wards.

“Since the last census conducted in 2006, there hasn’t been another exercise of it. And Kogi East produced 1.3 million persons out of the 3.4 million produced by the state,” he added.

Ijele further argued that the region consistently produces the highest number of votes during every general election cycle, insisting that this alone warrants its prioritisation over other regions in the state.

‘We Will Not Be Marginalised’

Apostle Gideon Isah, another member of the association, commended the INEC Chairman for the conduct of the recent gubernatorial election in Osun State, which was widely praised as free and fair. However, he urged Amupitan to resist any pressure or inducement from political actors in Kogi State.

“The INEC Chairman should make sure injustice doesn’t stand under his watch. We applauded him for the last election in Osun, he shouldn’t spoil that record. He should make sure the good name is upheld, because we’re proud of him as one of our own from Kogi State,” Apostle Gideon said.

“Kogi East is too large to be marginalised; Kogi East is too big to be undermined; and so we’re here in our numbers to tell the INEC Chairman and everyone in this headquarters that we will not be marginalised,” he added.

Key Formal Demands

In a unison declaration, the association presented three key demands to the electoral commission:

1. Suspension of any ward creation exercise that excludes Kogi East;
2. Public disclosure of the criteria, data and constitutional basis used in proposing new wards across Kogi State;
3. Conduct of a transparent, fair and inclusive review of the ward creation exercise to ensure Kogi East receives equitable consideration based on population, voter distribution and geographical realities.

INEC Response

Receiving the youth delegation in the absence of the INEC Chairman—who was said to be out of the country—was Indidi Okafor, the Director of Security at the commission.

Mrs Okafor acknowledged the protesters’ grievances and commended them for their law-abiding approach to expressing their displeasure.

“We thank you so much for coming over here to express your anger in a law-abiding manner. The commission has heard you and we promised to convey your message to the Chairman once he arrived,” Mrs Okafor stated.

The commission officially acknowledged receipt of the association’s letter and issued a copy of the acknowledgement to the delegation leaders.

The protesters dispersed peacefully after the meeting, expressing hope that their concerns would be addressed promptly.