•Okowa, Oborevwori grin as opposition re-strategises   

•Party leaders wait for Ibori; Edevbie under pressure

Surprising rebirth of PDP 

With the eye-catching nonappearance of the two former governors, Chief James Ibori, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, and other leaders at the inauguration of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Delta State Campaign Council in Asaba, on November 3, many thought the party, governing the state for over 23 years could not pick its pieces anymore.

Every party faithful knows that Ibori and Uduaghan did not see eye to eye with the governor and vice-presidential candidate, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, on the latter’s preference for Rt. Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, the party’s 2023 governorship candidate, but with the Supreme Court finally recognizing Oborevwori, last month, they thought their leaders should sink their differences. 

Some opposition leaders viewed the non-attendance of Ibori and Uduaghan, despite their invitation and ranking in the council, as a very strong sign that PDP was in trouble. The decision, by Ibori’s favored candidate, Olorogun David Edevbie, days after, to join Agwarionovwe Ikie, in his suit against Oborevwori, current Speaker of the state House of Assembly at the Federal High Court, Abuja, after losing at the Supreme Court to Oborevwori, was the substantiation they needed. 

Therefore, when Ibori’s political ally and Delta Central senatorial candidate, Chief Ighoyota Amori, declared, recently, at a PDP’s ward-to-ward campaign, attended by Oborevwori, PDP’s House of Representative candidate for Ethiope federal constituency, Hon. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, who is Ibori’s daughter, that Ibori was not against Oborevwori’s emergence as governor, and those against him fired back at him.

In fact, a former Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Monday Igbuya, who is on Edevbie side, discredited Amori’s story, saying he contacted Ibori, who distanced himself from Amori’s claim.  

The counterclaim came as a shock to the party faithful, as Hon Ibori-Suenu, on the ground when Amori made the statement about her father did not counter his assertion. Rather, she and Oborevwori busied themselves pleading with the electorate to vote for Atiku/Okowa presidential ticket, Oborevwori for governor, Amori for Delta Central senatorial seat, and Ibori-Suenu for Ethiope federal constituency.

Going for the broke

Opposition strategists also took advantage of the Amori/Igbuya face-off, but 48 hours later, the bubble burst, as Uduaghan oiled the works for the PDP.

Those who know Uduaghan recognize that he and Ibori are not just brothers; he is the closest political associate of his younger cousin, who brought him into politics. As Ibori, Edevbie, Senator James Manager, and any other person felt in the power game that threw up Oborevwori as the party’s gubernatorial candidate, so Uduaghan.

Indeed, his daughter, Orode Uduaghan, believed to have the capacity, lost out in the scramble for the party’s Warri North House of Assembly ticket, despite his father’s position.

However, last Saturday, Uduaghan changed the game for PDP, Oborevwori and Okowa, when he put to rest the speculation that the Ibori political family would work for the opposition candidate in the state.

Since his smash hit “we are behind you” declaration of support for Oborevwori, the former governor said he had not slept as people have been calling and sending him messages to know why he put out his finger for Okowa and Oborevwori.

At a meeting of Delta South senatorial district leaders to herald the ward-to-ward campaign in the district, which he hosted, on November 12, at Warri, Uduaghan, for the first time since Oborevwori’s materialization, said: “We have a governorship candidate, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, and deputy governorship candidate, Sir Monday Onyeme. They are our own.

He reechoed the next day, November 13, at a meeting of the Old Students’ Association, Federal Government College, Warri, and FEGOCOWOSA. Saturday Vanguard learned that Oborevwori stormed the meeting and actually caught Uduaghan unawares.

The ex-governor declared: ”I am sincerely excited that you (Oborevwori) are here today, something happened on Saturday, November 12, 2022. I said something somewhere at a meeting and it has been trending in social media. It surprised many people that I spoke like that.

“That I have identified with you properly because they assumed I was critically against you. As I told them at the meeting on Saturday, there is no transition from a sitting governor to a non-sitting governor that is very easy.

“I have openly identified with you on Saturday to kill a lot of rumors. Since Saturday, I have not slept, I have been receiving many messages, why did you do that, why did you do that?

“I did it out of my personal convictions, we are humans, and we have our divisions. We have issues everywhere,  there are issues even from the swearing-in, when you sit on that seat and lead us more until then; the problem will continue every minute, every day.

“But by God’s grace, you have a lot of pushing in absorbing every multiple problem and we are part of the push, we are behind you. Delta State will benefit a lot from your administration if elected Governor next year,” he said.

Knocking off balance 

Unlike Amori, PDP and opposition stakeholders have not mustered the courage to challenge the stand of Uduaghan, a senior member of the Ibori political family on Oborevwori.

Uduaghan has thrown the major opposition in the state off balance, since last Saturday, when he threw his weight behind Oborevwori and the vice presidential ticket of Okowa, as it never thought the bad blood among PDP leaders would not cease.

With Uduaghan’s open declaration for Oborevwori, Okowa, and all PDP candidates, the party faithful is waiting for Ibori to complete the circus. They know that Uduaghan and Ibori have been discussing the problems of the party and wherever Uduaghan stands, Ibori will not deviate. 

Okowa, Oborevwori smile

Saturday Vanguard confirmed that the governor, Okowa, and Oborevwori have been grinning since Uduaghan oiled the works for the party.

A happy Oborevwori told Uduaghan at the FEGOCOWOSA meeting: ”My boss, it is a privilege and honor to be here this today. I got the information that the old students of the Federal Government College, Warri, are having a meeting and I came over here to greet you people but did not know that my boss and immediate past governor of Delta State, His Excellency, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan is here.”

“When I got here and saw his car, I was shocked and I am happy meeting him here, he is a very humble, very calm, and a much-focused leader. He is a man of little words, but full of actions because I worked with him when he appointed me as Special Adviser on Security. I thank you, Sir.

“I am part of your product and if I am bad, you have a bad product. His Excellency, I am here to greet you, this is not a political rally, I know some will not like it, but as a Warri boy, I know you will like it,” he said.  

Time to forget the wound

Our findings showed the way delegates and candidates emerged at the primaries of the party created a supposed “toxic environment”, but the with Supreme Court finally determining the authentic governorship standard-bearer, some leaders reasonably believe it was time to accept what the party has offered and move on.

A party leader, who confided in this writer, said: “Yes, many people are angry for one reason or the other, but we cannot move forward by continuing to hold a meeting upon meeting on an issue that the solution is very clear.”

“The Supreme Court had since declared Oborevwori as our candidate and since the way forward is not for us to decamp from our party. As party men, we have to accept the position of the party. Therefore, holding a series of meetings and procrastinating to embrace our party’s governorship candidate is dangerous.

“Those who still insist that we should wait, I do not see what we are waiting for, they are misleading others, and the best thing is for us to move ahead with our candidate. On my own, I felt we are wasting too much time, the 2023 elections are here, and the way forward is that either you are in or you are out.

“The Ibori political family, in which Ibori, Uduaghan, Okowa, and others are key leaders remains intact. The PDP family is also in one piece and we have to let go.

“The controversy we actually have is about Oborevwori because of the query raised about him. However, if you really look at it, some people are over dragging the matter; Oborevwori is more acceptable than other candidates in the governorship race, God has a way of doing things beyond human comprehension, and what some of us see in Oborevwori is his deficiency, but God sees his strength, therefore, we should let God’s will prevail,” he added.

Many believe that Uduaghan, who spoke for himself, and not for Ibori, took a popular decision, and remembering his John, the Baptist role when he joined and later left APC, he could herald Ibori’s endorsement for Oborevwori. Currently, Edevbie is also under pressure to fully support Oborevwori.  

APC predicts electoral disaster for PDP

However, APC governorship candidate and Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, whose party flags off its governorship campaign and presidential rally, today, at Warri, does not think that PDP has what it takes to continue governing the state.

Complaining about the closure of routes leading to Warri Township Stadium, Warri, the venue of the flagship events, the Director, Communications, and Media Strategy of Delta APC Campaign Organization, Ima Niboro, predicted that PDP would face electoral calamity, next year,  

 “Faced with its dismal performance in governance, the Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa-led PDP administration has clearly seen that their mis-governance portends a coming electoral disaster at the polls, next year, and has resorted to wickedness, illegality, and every dubious means possible to thwart their inevitable route,” he said, but PDP spokesperson, Dr. Ifeanyi Osuoza, debunked the allegation.