The Sheriff Oborevwori Administration of Delta State has presented series of spectacular events, some of which defy human logic. Governor Oborevwori himself emerged Governor after surviving as many as 38 court cases, which were veritable land mines strewn on his part to stop him from becoming Governor. As a man destined to govern the state, he weathered all storms, and today, no one is in doubt that he didn’t become governor by chance but through divine orchestration

The 18 -month old administration of Sheriff Oborevwori, with its M.O.R.E agenda mantra, presents features that are distinct from those of his predecessors in ways that are deliberately remarkable :

(1) A PREDILECTION FOR QUALITY PROJECTS
One distinctive feature of the Oborevwori administration is its emphasis on quality projects. The administration has thus hired reputable construction firms like Julius Berger, CCC construction company, CCECC, Levant Construction Company, SETRACO and tested home grown construction firms like Obakpor Engineering Limited to execute its high profile construction projects.

While Julius Berger is handling the construction of three bridges, cloverleaf and road expansion projects in Warri/Effurun metropolis, CCECC is handling the sector C of the 167 Kilometer Asaba Ughelli expressway including the complex Obo bridge at Ogwashi Uku.

SETRACO is handling the ambitious Trans-Warri Ode 20.95 Kilometer Itsekiri road with multiple bridges and spurs. Also, Obakpor Engineering, a reputable indigenous firm, is handling the Orere bridge in the Ughelli South Local Government area.

Remarkably, Governor Oborevwori pays personal attention to these projects to complement the efforts of competent Commissioners and government Engineers who oversee them. Besides, Governor Oborevwori has the spectacular habit of setting aside monies for projects while still under construction to avoid project abandonment. To this end, all the projects bequeathed to it by the Okowa administration have either been completed or are at varying stages of completion.

(2) ZERO TOLERANCE FOR SHODDY OR SUB-STANDARD PROJECTS
Right from inception, Governor Oborevwori made it clear to Contractors that his administration was going to have zero tolerance for shoddy or substandard jobs. He made it clear that contracts were going to be awarded to only competent contractors in line with the M.O.R.E agenda of the administration. To this end, he appointed a competent civil Engineer as the Special Adviser for Project Monitoring and Audit and a strong team of project monitors to ensure compliance.

Governor Oborevwori ensures that monies set aside for projects have value just as he abhors cutting corners or use of out-of-specification materials for projects .

(3) JUDICIOUS USE OF PUBLIC FUNDS FOR PUBLIC GOOD
Governor Oborevwori is a good manager of men and resources and he exhibits these good traits in the management of state resources. Since mounting the saddle as Governor of Delta state, he has not borrowed a kobo to finance Government projects. He works within means and ensures that government obligations to contractors and civil/public servants are met as at when due.

Oborevwori has consistently plugged all areas of waste or leakages while also ensuring that Government does not indulge in reckless expenditure that gives the impression that his government is a “Father Christmas”

(4) DELIBERATE AND SUSTAINABLE HUMAN CAPITAL ENGAGEMENT
In line with the M.O.R.E Agenda, Governor Oborevwori started early by recruiting 3000 teaching and non-teaching staff across the 25 local government areas of the state. The Governor also ensured that students of Delta State origin, numbering over 60,000 in tertiary institutions across the country, received their 2022/2023 bursary while also approving a 25% reduction in acceptance fees in the four state-owned universities. The Governor has so far done three tranches of palliative distribution to widows, the aged, and vulnerable segments of the society.

The State’s MORE GRANT SCHEME has recorded tremendous results as thousands of beneficiaries in targeted trades/artisans have been empowered. Meanwhile, direct beneficiaries of the Delta COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (D-CARES) had exponentially increased from 36,353 to 110,841 within one year of the Oborevwori administration. The Delta State government, under Oborevwori’s watch, is poised to create 50,000 jobs with the introduction of Special Agricultural Economic Zones with special strategic partnership with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the African Development Bank, and International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA ), amongst others.

Also, the Oborevwori administration has given financial assistance to students of Delta State extraction in seven Nigeria law schools across the Nation. This is in addition to the payment of N14.5 billion as pension obligations to retired workers in the State. As a workers-friendly administration, Governor Oborevwori has not only paid the outstanding promotion arrears of civil servants but also promptly approved a minimum wage of N77,000 Naira for civil servants in the State.

(5)DELIBERATE YOUTH ENGAGEMENT AT HIGH LEVEL OF GOVERNANCE
Perhaps no government before it in Delta State has given youths the opportunity to participate in high levels of Government as the Oborevwori administration has done. The Oborevwori administration lived up to its campaign promise by unprecedentedly giving several youths opportunities to serve as members of the state Executive Council. About 30% of the state commissioners are below 40, and this is replicated in the number of youths who are EAs, SSAs, and SAs. This policy has brought a lot of succour to youths in the state and increased capacity building, youth empowerment, and succession planning in governance.

(6)EMPOWERMENT OF MORE WOMEN IN GOVERNMENT THROUGH POLICY OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
The government of Oborevwori is very women-friendly.
To foster gender inclusiveness, Governor Oborevwori directed the state PDP to ensure that when a man emerges as Chairmanship candidate in the local government election, the Vice Chairman must be a woman. The Governor also directed that at least three women must emerge as Councillors in each of the Local Government Councils.

The last local government election, therefore, produced more women in that tier of government than any administration before it since 1999. This policy again has engendered inclusion and peace in the state.

(7)A GOVERNMENT OF INCLUSION
The Oborevwori administration promised to run a government of inclusion and has so far lived to its promise. To create an atmosphere of inter-party harmony and cohesion, Governor Oborevwori appointed several opposition party chairmen to serve in his government. That aside, the Governor gave appointments to non-indigenes in the state and gave the nonindigene community in the state a special status, thus fostering a unique opportunity for them to participate in the affairs of government.

(8)A MORE BALANCED PATRONAGE AND RESOURCE DISTRIBUTION TO THE DIFFERENT ETHNIC NATIONALITIES IN DELTA STATE
The Government of Sheriff Oborevwori has deliberately created ethnic balancing by ensuring even distribution of patronage and resources to the different ethnic nationalities in the state. At no time before now has the different ethnic nationalities experienced this type of inter-communal peace in the state. For the first time since 1999, the Ndokwa Nation produced a Deputy Governor. An Itsekiri man is the state Chairman of PDP, while an Ijaw man is the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly. An Isoko man is the Chief of Staff while an Ika man is the SSG. The Aniocha/Oshimili Federal constituency has produced the Senator representing Delta North in the Senate. The Political lines has fallen in pleasant places, and no community is left out. The Isoko people were recently pleasantly surprised when Governor Oborevwori facilitated a new faculty of Basic medical sciences in the University of science and Technology Ozoro and also approved immediate building of a new faculty building to accommodate students into the new faculty. Such is the spirit with which the Governor creates community peace and security .

The aforementioned Political craftmanship perhaps explains the reason why Sheriff Oborevwori had the distinction of being not only the longest-serving speaker in the Delta state of Assembly (11th May 2017 – May 28th, 2023) but also the only speaker in the history of the Assembly to have transmuted from one administration to another.

● Fred Akpewe
Senior Media Analyst

The group, New Delta Coalition, has urged Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to cooperate fully with federal investigators regarding alleged financial mismanagement during Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa’s tenure as governor.

Okowa is accused of misappropriating N1.3 trillion of Delta State funds between 2015 and 2023.

The former governor who was arrested was subsequently detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Reacting to the arrest, the coalition in a statement by Godwin Anaughe, called for transparency and accountability, stressing that Governor Oborevwori, as the former Speaker of the Delta State Assembly, has a responsibility to ensure that the state’s resources are protected.

He also stressed the need for the governor to work with investigators to recover allegedly looted funds and hold Okowa and his collaborators accountable.

According to the coalition, the whopping N1.3 trillion alleged to have been misappropriated by Okowa’s administration represents 13% derivation funds of Delta State’s allocation from the federation account between 2015 and 2023.

The group claimed that the alleged diversion of funds for personal gain, including acquiring properties in Abuja and Asaba, Delta State, has breached public trust during Okowa’s governorship.

They also condemned the suspicious investment of N40 billion in UTM Floating Liquefied Natural Gas, allegedly redirected for unrelated purposes, adds complexity to Okowa’s alleged misdeeds.

The statement reads;

The arrest and detention of Ifeanyi Okowa, former Governor of Delta State, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for alleged misappropriation of N1.3 trillion of Delta State funds is shocking but hardly surprising. This staggering amount, representing 13% derivation funds of Delta State’s allocation from the federation account between 2015 and 2023, was meant to benefit the people of Delta State.

Ifeanyi Okowa’s alleged diversion of these funds for personal gain, including acquiring properties in Abuja and Asaba, Delta State, breached public trust during his governorship. Furthermore, the suspicious investment of N40 billion in UTM Floating Liquefied Natural Gas, allegged to have been redirected for unrelated purposes, adds another layer of complexity to Okowa’s alleged misdeeds.

These revelations, especially given his history of neglecting to pay civil servants and pensioners while accumulating massive debt, make Okowa’s dismal record of achievement in office all the more disappointing.

Okowa’s alleged financial crimes confirm the prevalent and pervasive corruption, lack of transparency and accountability, impunity, and executive lawlessness of the PDP administration in Delta State, which over the years have exacerbated the struggles of everyday Deltans. It’s unacceptable that those in power prioritize personal gain over the welfare of the people they serve.

The EFCC’s investigation and arrest of Okowa are crucial steps toward ensuring accountability and justice. We commend the EFCC’s efforts and urge them to conduct a thorough investigation to ensure that the funds are recovered and the perpetrators are prosecuted and brought to justice.

Delta State’s widespread poverty and underdevelopment have been constructed and sustained by monumental corruption and theft of the state’s resources. The chronic lack of basic social services, infrastructure, and economic opportunities contradicts the humongous federal allocations. While Okowa and his cronies allegedly looted the state’s treasury, the good people of Delta State remained consigned to live in squalor and extreme poverty.

Poverty conditions in the state’s oil-rich areas are exacerbated by unremedied pollution, ecological damage, and unmitigated climate change. Oil-producing communities in Urhobo, Itsekiri, Ijaw, Isoko and Ndokwa continue to suffer neglect and misery due to corruption and bad governance.

The Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), established to facilitate development, has failed to justify its mandate and dashed hopes for sustained interventions to promote development and progress of concerned areas.

The lack of visible progress and development under Governor Oborevwori’s administration is astounding and suggests a bleak future for Deltans, particularly regarding the alleged misappropriation of massive funds flowing into the state’s coffers. Between June 2023 and July 2024, Delta State received N239.6 billion.

The New Delta Coalition strongly condemns Okowa’s alleged financial crimes. We call for a thorough and transparent investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators. Deltans deserve to be served with the highest attainable standards of transparency, accountability, and good, effective governance. We will continue to advocate for their rights, with the sole aim of Building A New Delta.

We have just read a statement credited to former vice president Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, in which he tried to discredit President Bola Tinubu’s economic reform programmes while pushing his untested agenda as a better alternative.

First, Alhaji Atiku’s ideas, which lacked details, were rejected by Nigerians in the 2023 poll.

If he had won the election, we believe he would have plunged Nigeria into a worse situation or run a regime of cronyism.

Abubakar lost the election partly because he vowed to sell the NNPC and other assets to his friends. Nigerians have not forgotten this, nor would they be comforted by Atiku’s antecedents when he ran the economy in the first term of President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government between 1999 and 2003.

As vice president, Atiku supervised a questionable privatisation programme. He and his boss demonstrated a lack of faith in our educational system, and both went to establish their universities while they allowed ours to flounder.

Talk is cheap. It is easy to pontificate and deride a rival’s programmes even when there are irrefutable indices that the economic reforms yield positives despite the temporary difficulties.

Despite the futile attempt to hoodwink Nigerians again in his statement, it is gratifying that the former Vice President could not repudiate the economic reforms pursued by the Tinubu administration because they are the right things to do.

His advocacy for a gradualist approach only showed that he was not in tune with the enormity of problems inherited by President Tinubu.

It is so easy to paint a flowery to-do list. It is expected of an election loser.

President Tinubu met a country facing several grave challenges. Fuel subsidies were siphoning away enormous resources we could ill afford, and there was criminal arbitrage in the forex market.

No leader worth his name will allow these two economic disorders to persist without moving to end them surgically.

While advocating for gradual reforms may sound appealing, Tinubu took measures that should have been taken decades ago by Alhaji Abubakar and his boss when they had the opportunity.

Alhaji Abubakar calls for empathy and a human face to reforms. We have no problem with this as it resonates well with our administration’s focus. President Tinubu has consistently emphasised the need for compassion and protection of the most vulnerable.

The administration has prioritised social safety nets and targeted support for those affected by recent economic transitions.

Bayo Onanuga
Special Adviser to President Tinubu

(Information and Strategy)

November 3, 2024

The Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo has vowed that his government will go after cultists whose clash caused the deaths of at least 13 people in Nibo Community of Anamabra State.

The victims were said to have lost their lives on Sunday when two rival cults clashed in the community located in Awka South Local Government Area of the state.

Soludo said, “Every avoidable loss of life in Anambra shatters my heart, especially when young lives are cut short. The mindless violence between rival cults in our communities is heartbreaking.

“Yesterday’s tragic incident in Nibo, where young lives were lost, is unacceptable. We have an anti-cultism law in place, and I have ordered immediate action against those involved.

“But laws alone aren’t enough. Parents and community leaders, let’s join forces to protect our youth! We can’t sit back while our children destroy themselves.

“Let’s take action at home and in our communities to end cultism. We will continue to pray for the lost souls and work towards a safer Anambra where people will live by the law and draw lessons from this avoidable tragedy.”