By Adewale Sakariyah

Chief William Onakpoma is passionate about the good things of life positive politics can create. He is a retired but not tired management staff of Nigerian AGIP Oil Company, NOAC, to be specific. In a pre-interview encounter, he declared, “All through my years on earth, the passion to do what is right by God and the people around me has been my prime motivations of living and being relevant…”

He does not claim to be an archetypal Nigerian politician but insists all the same that it is so right to brand every human being a political animal. To him, a healthy political environment is a sine qua non for sustainable development. Excerpts from the interview:

Let’s start from your home front, Kokori, in Urhoboland, Delta State, which has been embroiled in crises. What does this portend?
First of all, I will thank everybody, every institution that sacrificed time and resources to bring cessation of hostilities and relative peace we have in Kokori today. In particular, I wish to commend Governor Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, who quickly drew a line between meaningful agitation and criminality.

At my age, experience and position, I cannot equivocate. As it is my nature, I call it black if it is black and white if it is white. The ranks of Kokori youths were definitely infiltrated and the collective interests of the land highly compromised. The later day explanations and justifications for the so-called uprising were more of after-thoughts. We should leave this to forensic truth experts to unravel, if necessary.

I have never stopped asking the rhetoric question: How can a fruit so ripe, so alluring, so inviting, become, at the same time, so bitter? God in his infinite wisdom created Kokori land and the high quality crude it has been producing for over 50 years. God does not make mistakes and his word does not return void. God’s promises are unchangeable and are forever.

The stark truth is that Kokori qualifies and remains a paradox in the manner of Oloibiri in Bayelsa State and several other places where crude oil abounds. Relevant stakeholders, especially governments, should go back to the drawing board to re-shape the lives of the affected people. And our youths should cultivate and apply the culture of non-violence.

Should we allow violence to bring down the roof of the world? Violence begets violence. Our people of the past lived their lives to the full without oil. Here I find myself going back to praise Governor Uduaghan once again. Nigerians should carefully study his innovative theme of ‘DELTA BEYOND OIL’ and seek alternative means of income and wealth creation.

So, how do you see the recent upheaval in Kokori?
It is totally unfortunate. It is temptation of the highest order. It crept in to envelope the people by night.  Now and always, I wish to call on the Delta State Government especially that a child could be tempted to stray and it is the hand with which the parent beats him is also the one used in calling him back for comfort and succor. I am the Chairman of the Kokori Community Trust and I certainly know where the shoe pinches in Kokori.

Kokori needs assistance from both the State Government and other well-meaning people of goodwill and humanitarian-based institutions. Kokori urgently needs renewal especially in the area of sustainable development. Also, ways should be devised on how to avert what happened, not only to Kokori but also to other parts of Nigeria.

So what is the way out?
Anyway, my final take on this issue is that whatever that happens is ordained by God. This same God will heal Kokori now and always. I am a child of promise. I prefer to look at the tomorrow ahead of me rather than belly-ache about yesterday and its wreckages.

The good works of the Governor Uduaghan should be complimented in order to arrest youth restiveness in Delta State in particular and Nigeria as a whole by way of good governance and quality leadership. The timely intervention of Governor Uduaghan saved the day in Kokori as it unfortunately degenerated to Kokori-on-Kokori. We cannot say it all here. Can we move on from this topic now?

It appears there is so much politics in you and you may be making a major entry into it…you may not be different from others who retire from formal engagement into politics and…?
No, no, not so fast. I am actually moving into business and in this process look for more ways of being more useful to my people of Kokori, Ethiope East LGA, Delta State and Nigeria in general. Politics should not be an end in its self but a means to an end in the spheres of common good.

This is what our great mentor; Chief Patrick Bolokor of blessed memories taught us, his ardent followers. Chief Bolokor, a former Minister of the First Republic, became the arrow-head of progressive politics. He did not only point to us the strength of mainstream and all-inclusive politics but the potential and the destructive nature of opposition politics.

Before he died, he had become a philosopher-politician which non in Delta State could ignore or fault. His recognition, acknowledgement and elevation in the scheme of politics in Delta by Governor Uduaghan, especially in stemming the tide of dissent and reverting to mainstream PDP in Delta Central Senatorial District cannot be forgotten. He made Deltans to understand that there should be no acrimony in politics.

His exit created a painful vacuum which is yet to be filled in the political and leadership spheres. My consolation lies in the fact that the LGA is blessed with human resources who have good leadership qualities and experiences that will eventual wear the cap of our late political Icon. It is equally worthy to mention here that such leadership materials are already rearing their heads in the LGA. Everyone is watching out. What is of major importance here is the need to appeal to all stakeholders to facilitate the healing process of divisive wounds.

We should sink our individual differences and seek the collective good for the greater number of our people. This is what Chief Bolokor will expect even at the other side of the great divide. What remains to be done is the flawless nomination and election of a Local Government Chairman and Councilors who know their onions.

Can we therefore call your romance with politics a pet project of sorts?
Not a mere pet project. It should be more than that. I have been helping or assisting my people for as long as I have cash in my pocket. Now I have more time in my hands to do more good by them. Politics is about people getting together to affect their societies for the better. I am for anything that can or should be done in this direction.

INEC has released the electoral time-table, how do you see the coming general elections?
For me a lot has changed with my retirement. While I was still in service I only did my thing in politics from the sidelines as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. But now that I have more time on my hands and in better position to serve my people I have already moved from the periphery, so to say, to the centre, the heart of politics.

Any quest for elective office?
I am neither an impatient nor a greedy man. I may be ambitious but never the inordinate type. I am not blinded by the lure and pull of power. I am a complete party man who plays by the rules in the acknowledged spirit of a team player.

You see, what is destroying many politicians and party politics is the subjugation of the individual, the elevation of the self over the corporate interests of the majority. In all I do, I look up to God. The water that I will drink will not flow out of my reach.

So what have you to tell politicians from this point of view?
Wait on God. Everyone should wait for the divine table that has been laid out for everyone. I will cite an example here. President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is a typical living example of those who waited on the Lord. Go back to his travails as a Deputy Governor through the Vice-Presidency. The Bible admonished us to go to the ant for lessons on wisdom. Many of us fail to do this.

Because he did not impose himself on the country you can see the good works, the silent but telling transformation of a leader who bided on God.
For the time being President Jonathan may not be every person’s man but history has a date with him. A time will certainly come when he will be asked by Nigeria to stand up to be counted amongst the best that left their feet solidly in the sands of time.

The Transformation Agenda he is prosecuting is not everyone’s delight. But you see there are undiscerning people who believe that they can eat omelet without breaking eggs. I always go with those who believe and insist that ‘no pain, no gain.’

How does what you have just said compare with what is on the ground in Delta?
It is always said that there are different strokes for different folks. Only those who understand Delta State and know from where it is coming from that will be better placed to situate its electoral fortunes.

I doubt if there is enough time to elaborate. As an individual and a PDP leader, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan is the man to watch for effects in 2015. He has not only taken Delta to the heart of the PDP and the nation but he is also at home in steering the affairs of Delta to a flourish-finish. He has assured Deltans that he will finish strong and already the larger picture is emerging across the state.

Most importantly, in my estimation, Uduaghan has rescued Delta Central Senatorial District, which is home to the Urhobo, from the stranglehold of opposition. The Urhobo have never been good and comfortable in opposition and while it lasted it was sheer nightmare. The election of Senator Emmanuel Aguariavwodo has finally relieved the Urhobo of their worries and troubles.

The Urhobo are looking up to better days ahead. They certainly deserve much more of the national serving than they currently get. Everything should be done to prevent this essential enclave of the nation from relapsing into opposition once again.

You have talked of the Urhobo being once in opposition to the PDP, was your Ethiope East LGA not at the centre of the crises?
This is all the more reason why I am truly happy that the Urhobos have gotten their act right once again. Ethiope East is known to be a typical hotbed of politics in Delta State. Count who-is-who in the old and modern politics from the defunct Midwest to the current Delta State and you will find it fully represented.

So, what is your general take on 2015 elections?
There are still many bridges ahead.  We cannot cross all of them at the same time. The nation should go back to God with more prayers. We really need the divine touch of God to succeed.