THE expectation before now was that in 2015, under the PDP zoning arrangement, the North Senatorial district (Anioma) in Delta State will produce the successor to the incumbent Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, who is from Delta South Senatorial district, comprising Ijaw, Itsekiri and Isoko.
Nwaoboshi flew the kite
Chairman of the party in the state, Chief Peter Nwaboshi, who is eying the Delta North senatorial seat in 2015, dropped the hint on the assumed power rotation agreement, some months ago, but was quickly tackled by some groups and politicians from the Delta Central senatorial district (Urhobo), who debunked the existence of such accord.
The ground of the Delta North gubernatorial proponents is that former governor, Chief James Ibori, an Urhobo, had served an eight-year tenure (1999-2007), while Dr. Uduaghan would complete the eight-year tenure of the South senatorial district in 2015, and so, in the spirit of equity and justice, North senatorial district should take over from him.
North contenders
Gubernatorial aspirants, including the former Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Chief Victor Ochei, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, Presidential Adviser on Monitoring, Prof Sylvester Monye, Chief of Staff, Government House, Asaba, Dr. Festus Okubor, retired police officer, Chief Godswill Obielum, Hon Ndudi Elumelu, Mrs. Ngozi Olejeme and Prince Sam Obi are insisting that it is the turn of their senatorial district to govern the state.
Some of them are already on the campaign train, visiting traditional rulers, political leaders and groups in both Central and South senatorial districts to make known their ambitions.
Central parade
But, the Central district, parading the likes of the Ugo of Okpe kingdom and Commissioner for Housing, Chief Paulinus Akpeki, industrialist and criminologist, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi, Obarisi Ovie Omo-Agege, Chief David Edevbie and others maintain that the Urhobo people cannot afford to let the governorship seat elude them.
South district
From Uduaghan’s South senatorial district, former Minister of Niger-Delta, Elder Godsday Orubebe, is among the notables who want to take over from his Itsekiri fellow citizen, Dr. Uduaghan.
Gbagi rejects zoning
During his recent visit to the Urhobo Political Forum, UPF, former Minister of State for Education, Olorugun Gbagi, pointed out that he was not aware of any zoning arrangement, saying, “My position is let the best for the growth and progress of Delta state emerge as governor in 2015.”
Evidently referring to the controversial power rotation agreement, Gbagi asserted: “I disagree that Urhobo should recapitulate and play second fiddle in the governance of the state.”
…Akpeki too
Chief Akpeki, known to have made his intention known to the Urhobo Progress Union, UPU, and presently making consultations with other groups within and outside the state, is also among the aspirants said have stated categorically that there was no zoning agreement on governorship in the state.
Akpeki, who believes he stands a very good chance of picking the party’s ticket is the Commissioner for Housing and one of the powers behind the emergence of several governors of the state, including Chief Felix Ibru, Chief James Ibori and Dr Uduaghan.
UPU to screen aspirants
To underscore the seriousness of Delta Central in the 2015 governorship race, the UPU, led by Major General Patrick Aziza (retd.) had reportedly set the machinery in motion to pick a consensus governorship candidate for the senatorial district.
Idogho disagrees
However, a PDP chieftain from the Central senatorial district, Hon. James Idogho, reacting to the claim by an Urhobo leader and erstwhile council chair, Dr. Wilson Omene, that governorship of the state was the birthright of the Urbobos, told Saturday Vanguard: “My answer is no, no because it cannot be so. If he is judging Delta state from that angle, it therefore means he is against the President that he cannot be President for a second tenure come 2015.”
His words, “People from northern part of Delta State, especially Okowa and others
are people with proven integrity who started from the grassroots. If you read their history, how they started politics and how they are climbing, they have not been faulted. Since they have never been faulted, which you and I know, hence they have been in those positions they have attained so far. By the grace of God, come 2015, they will produce the next Governor and deputy Governor because I know the God I serve as he has never failed me and he will never fail me.”
Ndokwa opposes Ika, Oshimili dominance
A political leader from Ndokwa axis of Delta North, Pastor Anthony Enuenwosu, however, faulted Chief Idogho, saying that Ndokwa people would pitch tent with the Central senatorial district in 2015 because the people were being marginalized by Ika and Oshimili people in the north district. Pastor Enuenwosu, who is the leader of South-South leader, Chief Edwin Clark’s political group in the north district said, “Our political leader, Chief Clark has told us to stand by Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi and we are standing by him.”
The Ndokwa leader, who said the power rotation agreement, existed only in the imagination of some persons, told Saturday Vanguard that as far as the Chief Clark group was concerned, the ambition of Elder Orubebe, from the same senatorial district as Clark, does not have the blessings of the group, and the stance, as earlier stated by the leader himself, has not changed.
Vanguard Newspapers
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