By Prince Abugo Akpo

Considering how hard he fought,  and the massive support and goodwill he enjoyed from Deltans, it is little surprising that Sheriff Francis Oborevwori was declared as winner of the Delta State gubernatorial poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission. But the path to triumph we all know is sometimes strewn with controversy. 

Julius Caesar of Rome experienced and even misunderstood it; and this was also true with some of his close friends and associates like Brutus. The road to victory is never smooth, it comes with blackmail, backbiting, backstabbing, envy, traitors, and much more. But these distractions are not insurmountable if the subject of attack is determined and focused. This was not different from the path of destiny that had beckoned on Sheriff Oborevwori. 

 The first obstacle was within the internal process of choosing a candidate for the PDP. Though it is one united political party, a lot of factions and divisions soon sprung up. This led to blackmail, character assassination and eventually when he emerged as the candidate of the PDP, the healing process became a tough task as those opposed never wanted to accept the process. As hard as the candidate and the leadership of the party tried to settle the various contriving forces, the more things became slippery and it was clear those opposed to his candidacy never wanted to support his candidacy. As time went, Oborevwori was confronted with three contending issues of peace building, acceptability by his opponents within the party and also selling himself to Deltans as the best alternative to succeed Governor Ifeanyi Okowa. 

It was an uncertain period where husbands betrayed their wives and wives milked husbands; where mothers sold their children for watery values, and where family members and children traded ancestral landmarks for peanuts. Critical minds who could speak the truth to those in power were blackmailed by sycophants, political jesters, political soothsayers, and praise singers.

It was a season where women abandoned matrimonial homes to hawk their bodies to the highest bidder; it was a season of triumph of hawks over doves, court cases upon court cases to stop just a candidate; and even within the PDP there were many moles, cankerworms, who were bent on pulling down the house that had sheltered them for decades because of selfish reasons. Money was a huge factor, prompting many to decamp and declare support for the opposition. This uncertainty continued until after the presidential election, and after the election, the tempo was raised. 

Rumors were common, grandstanding became a rule but Oborevwori and his army were unrelenting, focused and determined. Across the state, the presidential results jolted the PDP and its supporters to work harder while the opposition went to sleep, almost celebrating victory in an election that had not been conducted. But Oborevwori like a general, mobilised his troops, the various senatorial leaders; he was always in contact with the low and the high, always picking calls and never segregating on who to receive calls from; he was always on the streets, visiting communities and visiting individuals to tell all he could be trusted. He was unrelenting in giving out his manifesto on dividends of democracy; he reached out to the poor and rich, community leaders and traditional institutions, youths and elders, the privileged and underprivileged.

His home at Osubi was opened to all and became the people’s parliament, where ideas were hatched and driven. The leadership provided in these uncertainties was the vigor that revived the populace. While the opposition was thinking of using federal might to upstage PDP, Oborevwori was relying on the goodwill of the electorate, and this was the elixir that did the political magic. Democracy is about the people, their welfare, and also their decisions, the realisation that power belongs to the people, and he was not disappointed.

Fair-weather politicians, friends who were neither here nor there but decamped for stomach needs, were humiliated by the votes that the PDP garnered. Since the declaration of the results, it is clear that politics, though local, also appreciates integrity. Oborevwori laboured in tears and sweat, and now is a moment of recognition. Unfortunately, this moment like bees to honey invites intrusion sycophants and praise singers, those who were neither there nor here are quick in claiming credit for victory. What today calls for are ideas, support in order for Oborevwori to succeed.

It’s a time for ideas to revive the state and create necessary bond of love to sustain all; it’s a time for healing, reconciliation and dedication. It is also a time for caution because the same moles, political sycophants and jesters who had jumped ship trying to truncate the PDP victory are adept at rebounding; they are shameless and experts in coming back to eat their excreta; they should be avoided like a leprous part of the body because they can cause greater havoc in distraction. Oborevwori needs a team with ideas, not men of easy virtue;  he needs men of character, dedication and commitment.            

Victory is sweet, but those who contributed to it must not be forgotten. Oborevwori and the PDP must try hard to keep friends who went into the trenches with them while winning enemies to become friends; defeat comes with bitterness and dissolution. The victory of PDP in Delta State was no fluke; immediately after the results were announced, there was wild jubilation in several communities. The victory came with relief and great expectation, it was a sweet victory.

As defeat comes with bitterness, pain, and discontentment, so too does victory come with joy and lessons. Our politics is supposed to be based on ideas; it should be a sportsmanship contest. But sadly in Nigerian politics comes with bitterness, enmity, war, and the tendency to pull one another down. That is why we have a lot of court battles and unnecessary litigations. Unfortunately, our judicial system is so poor and corrupt that the highest bidder is rewarded. 

This is who we are, but we can begin with the regeneration of good homes, renaissance of our values with parents as good role models to their children. If our individual homes are good, we are bound to have a good society, good schools, and good institutions. This is where we are missing it, and we have, over the years, destroyed values and good character. We should use the election of Oborevwori as a base to reach greater heights. We should all come together and support him because the office of the governor cannot be occupied by more than one person at a time.

The resources his opponents are going to employ for litigation should be channeled into the constructive development of their various supporters and communities. They should rather pull their pool of ideas together to support him. We are first and foremost Deltans before our sojourn into different political parties. Why waste resources in litigation for lawyers who would not feel our pain when many Deltans are in dire need of basic amenities.

Akpo, asocialcommentator,wrote from Uzerein Delta State