There are clear indications that the public debates that will emerge during the campaigns leading up to the 2023 governorship elections in Delta state will be issues-based. Apart from an assessment of the social and economic achievements recorded in the last twenty three years of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leadership in the state, the political merits of each candidate and the validity of the different parties’ agenda will dominate debates.
For a start, the PDP leadership will need to address a growing perception that the party has been controlled by a small circle of individuals since 1999 whose personal interests have dictated the party’s policies and programmes in the state. This, critics say, have deprived the state of true democratic representation.
Backing this claim up are protests that greeted the endorsement of some candidates by the DC23, a lobby group that many believe was created by the same powerful fixers in the party so as to impose their will on the party. These claims were actually voiced by some aspirants who insisted that their ambitions would not be derailed by the group’s decision.
PDP supporters counter these claims with a reference to the recent defection of some All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders, including former state chairman of the party, Cyril Ogodo, former Publicity Secretary, Sylvester Imonina, and their supporters to the PDP as proof that the party still attracts wide support across the state. In the words of the PDP state chairman, Kingsley Esiso, “The PDP is Delta and Delta is the PDP”.
Opponents of the PDP leadership in the state insist that there can be no change in the current social condition unless a different party takes power. This has seen an intensified search for potential opposition candidates who could pull a surprise in the upcoming elections.
Some of the factors that would influence the voters choice of candidates will include the personalities involved in the race, their respective competences and their track records, such as public service experience, commentators say. Several names have emerged but only a select few are considered as capable of overcoming the challenges that the race would present.
In spite of the grievances over the endorsement of some aspirants by the DC 23, the group’s decision may likely dictate the choice of candidate in the PDP primaries because of the clout of the initiators of the group.
A name that has been touted as a likely PDP candidate is Olorogun David Edebvie. Edebvie’s candidacy is believed to have the backing of former governor of Delta state, Chief James Onanefe Ibori, who is still considered to be very influential in the party.
The choice of Edebvie is a smart one but it is believed that his election would rest too heavily on Ibori’s influence rather than his (Edebvie) popularity or exceptional qualities. In spite of this, many within the party believe Edebvie is a more marketable option than other contestants, none of whom has proven to possess evident value in key political circles.
Edebvie has commenced consultations with party delegates in all 16 LGAs in Delta Central and Delta South Senatorial Districts, putting in considerable effort that has raised his profile as a serious contender in the PDP significantly.
He also has some important qualities, like his array of educational qualifications and the fact that he has extensive public service experience as two time Commissioner of Finance and Chief of Staff to the current governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa. Edebvie’s age is also an advantage; at 59, his supporters say he represents “a generational force that would reinvent governance”.
However Edebvie is considered part of the same leadership circle that has held the state back with poor development policies and programmes over the years. Edevbie was an investment banker at the Commonwealth Development Corporation in London when he was called to serve as Commissioner for Finance and economic planning in Ibori’s government in 1999.
This fact simply expresses concerns about his complicity in the profligacy that that government was widely accused of, as he was considered Ibori’s man-friday. Also, some say that his alleged constant constant absence from office on trips abroad, as Commissioner under Ibori, suggest he has no connection to his primary political constituency. While these allegations are arguable, they raise serious questions about Edebvie’s commitment to relate with local demands in the state.
There is a popular opinion that Edevbie is rather distant from the realities in Delta state. He has been absent from most social interactions across the state and so does not feel the pulse of the people he intends to govern.
While he has not come out to announce his aspiration, many believe it is an open secret that the APC ticket would likely go to the Deputy Senate President (DSP), Senator Ovie Omo-Agege.
Sen. Omo-Agege’s political pedigree seems to tower above all other candidates. Apart from the fact that he is currently number six in Nigeria’s power hierarchy and the leader of the APC in the entire south-south, he is believed to interact more with his constituencies than Edebvie does.
Sen. Omo-Agege’s reputation as a resilient political opponent precedes him in political quarters across the state. Commentators say his emergence as a first time senator in 2015 under the banner of a relatively unknown party, the Labour Party (LP), when he won in the Delta Central senatorial district in Delta state, both considered as strongholds of the PDP, illustrates his ability to overcome the strategies of the PDP.
The DSP also has his drawbacks. There is the belief that since he had once been a member of the PDP and served actively in various key political positions under the Ibori government in Delta state, he also takes part of the blame for the failures of the PDP. His supporters insist, nonetheless, that he has morphed into an independent political force outside the PDP and has dispelled any assumption that his earlier affiliation confined him to the whims of the party’s leadership clique.
Many believe the alleged disagreements between Delta state governor, Okowa and Ibori, over Okowa’s successor on May 29, 2023, may favour the gubernatorial ambition of Sen. Omo-Agege. There is some merit to this claim but observers say this will not be on a platter of gold, as Omo-Agege would need to draw up a convincing programme to lift the state out of its current challenges.
On several occasions the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) has already implied that the focus of its campaign would be the leadership failures of the PDP while it promotes itself as a better alternative. The PDP, on the other hand, says that its efforts in education, human capital development and improvement in infrastructure will ensure it retains the state.
The PDP argues that its leadership has brought twenty three years of political stability in the state. Its supporters insist that the party has been inclusive in terms of political representation of all relevant groups and has also established a level of fiscal responsibility that has seen accountable management of the state’s resources.
Critics describe these claims as laughable and an ingenious attempt to twist facts, as the development indices betray all claims of financial propriety or responsible governance.
According to Efe Duku, Special Adviser on Legislative and Plenary Matters to the DSP, in an interview he granted a popular daily, the current PDP government has “failed in virtually every dimension of public governance. Their so-called ‘Smart Agenda’ has turned full circle to be outright mediocrity and a joke.” He insists that “virtually all the roads constructed under Okowa have failed, and that this state of affairs “is a hard, undeniable fact and they know it”.
Duku stresses that the rot is evident in all sectors; “…Go to our schools see the rot. The tertiary institutions have been reduced to glorified secondary schools because of poor funding, yet they are increasing fees with arbitrariness. Also, our health care facilities are dying. They only pay lip service to our abundant agricultural opportunities. The social and moral fabrics of our traditional society are being destroyed daily. Huge security votes are collected, but where is the security reality in Delta. Warri has become a dirty shanty. Everything indicts them”.
Some recent events in the state seem to validate the claims of public dissatisfaction with the incumbent leadership. One of these is a recent protest by retired local government workers and teachers over the non-payment of gratuities and pensions that they say have amounted to over N51billion accrued rights.
The PDP has challenged claims of fiscal irresponsibility as mere attempts to discredit its efforts in the state. But there have been many critics of the state’s development pace, which is considered disproportionate with its economic potentials. Delta state has been struggling with low internally generated revenue in comparison with other states that have equal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) volumes.
There is a general perception that the opposition may pull a surprise if it presents an agenda that addresses key concerns of the people and provides a logical approach to deliver on promises. What remains to be seen is how it intends to win the hearts and mind of the voters.
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