By Fidelis Egugbo
On May 29, 2024, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori and Sir Monday Onyeme, FCA, clocked one year in office as Governor and Deputy Governor of Delta State, respectively.
To mark the occasion, Deltans from all walks of life joined the governor and his deputy at the Events Centre for an event christened “Praise and Worship”.Of course, the hall was filled to capacity and there was heavy spill over as the people came out to sing praises to God.
Naturally, renowned artistes who were mainly Deltans, performed at the occasion.
Within the past one year, discerning minds have witnessed a steady delivery of good governance in the state right from the civil service through the health sector and education to general provision of infrastructure across the state.
Democracy provides for criticisms, hence one can hear from one or two dissenting voices; it is quite good for such people to come out to criticize the government, since it is their democratic right to do so.
But if you have to meet them on one-on-one basis, their reason for engaging in such criticisms, to say the least, could be very pedestrian, rather than being on the enduring interest of the generality of the people as necessary in a democratic environment.
Rt. Hon. Oborevwori, to the chagrin of some persons too, has demonstrated that he is not a sectional governor. From Delta Central to Delta South and then, Delta North Senatorial districts, the governor has shown that he is not new to the act of governance. He is the immediate past Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, DTHA, where, naturally, representatives of all Deltans worked with him, thus serving as a stepping stone for him to becoming Governor on account of which he is now working directly with, and for all Deltans.
From May 29, 2023 when he took the mantle of leadership from Senator Dr Ifeanyi Okowa at a colourful event at the Asaba Township Stadium, it was obvious that Deltans have every reason to thank God for the steady growth of democracy in the state, a rare democratic situation that has ensured continuity in civil governance from May 29, 1999 when Chief James Ibori emerged the Governor of Delta State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and further, entrenched a viable succession process in the party that has ensured continuity in governance, with the PDP holding sway till date.
Yes, James Ibori who emerged as a governor on the platform of the PDP, it is worthy to recall, discovered his successor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, when he made him Commissioner for Health in the state and further moved him to the position of the Secretary to the State Government ,SSG, and during that reshuffling of cabinet, he moved Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, who was then Commissioner in charge of the Ministry of Water Resources, to the Ministry of Health, and with Dr Uduaghan, taking over from Chief Ibori as Governor in 2007, Dr Okowa, among other positions, became the S S.G from where he moved to the Red Chambers as the Senator representing Delta North Senatorial District, before eventually returning to the state to take over as Governor from Dr Uduaghan.
If Rt. Hon. Oborevwori were a Medical Doctor, maybe, he would have also served as Commissioner for Health and possibly, SSG before becoming the governor. But he is a Political Scientist, who was again, discovered by former Governor James Ibori who gave him his first political appointment as Special Assistant from where he climbed to several positions in government before emerging as Governor.
Most people may not know it but the Governor of Delta State, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, has a knack for winning in elections – he was a Councillor, two-term member of the Delta State House of Assembly and, at the Assembly which had more than 25 election winners as members representing the different constituencies of the state, he was chosen to be their leader; till date, he holds the records of the longest serving Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, and the only one to have been elected Governor, while still Speaker.
And what is more! He is the only Okpe man to be elected governor and the only Speaker of DTHA to be elected state governor.
Rt. Hon. Oborevwori, it is also worthy to state, is a home grown politician; he did not return to Delta State in search of political patronage. As a ‘home boy’ he has always been around, knows the terrain well enough and understands the people. He speaks their language and can confidently address most Deltans by their names because he has always lived with, and among them. In short, he is not a visiting politician to the state; so, he is aware of what is expected of him as governor and is confidently doing such without seeking cheap podium endorsement, or even unearned applause, public or private.
Today, by the efforts of his administration, Warri, once known for its urban slum status, is wearing a new look. For instance, Julius Berger Plc, has commenced the construction of multi-billion naira flyovers in the oil city and adjoining roads. Why not? Rt. Hon. Oborevwori was born in Osubi, a twin settlement to Warri, and has lived most of his life in Warri where he has a lot of business interests; so, naturally, he understands the necessity to find sustainable, cost-efficient solutions to the development challenges of Warri, without prejudice to the felt development needs of other parts of the state.
From Ughelli to Asaba is a dual carriage way, a daring project indeed which only the Federal Government ought to execute given its huge size, is getting speedy attention from the Rt. Hon. Oborevwori’s administration. The project was initiated by former Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s administration mainly to facilitate movement of people and for easy evacuation of goods from Warri Port to the commercial city of Onitsha and it was inherited by former Governor Okowa’s administration that did a lot for the road to be completed but its construction has to be continued by Rt. Hon. Oborevwori’s administration.
One of the many benefits of having continuity in government is that good projects, by which is meant people-oriented projects, are not abandoned for new ones, and as such, Governor Oborevwori deserves kudos for not abandoning old projects, while initiating new ones.
For instance, the High Court Complex in Asaba is ready for commissioning and to be put to use. The gigantic project, imposing in outlook and grand in style, is due for commissioning on Tuesday, June 4, 2024, by former President Good luck Ebele Jonathan.
By all symbolism, the complex is a befitting testimonial to the faith of the administration in the judiciary as not only a critical third arm of public administration in the country, but also as the bastion, the last hope, of the common man.
In all, it has really been a tale of firm and steady steps in governance when one looks critically at what Governor Oborevwori’s administration is doing without bias.
His administration has ensured the employment of more than two thousand teachers and others into the state basic education system and the state civil service is also, enjoying robust attention from the government. It is also, worthy to state that some institutions of higher learning have taken off in the state within the past one year and private investors are equally having a field day in the state because it is peaceful and conducive for business activities.
One person that is working very closely with the governor to ensure hitch-free administration is his Deputy, Sir Monday Onyeme, FCA, a man who has been severally described as having followership in large numbers across the state.
Yours sincerely has worked closely with Deputy Governor Onyeme within the past one year, and, in him, one sees someone who is passionate about ensuring a stable government, a man who is always ready to attend to issues whenever such is delegated to him, a contented man who is happy to serve as the number two citizen of Delta State.
Within the past one year, Sir Onyeme has represented the governor on many occasions within and outside the state.
Among others, he was at the meeting of the governors of the Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, Cross-Rivers, Edo, Delta (BRACED) Commission held in Edo and that which was held in Bayelsa State. He has also led a high-powered delegation to the National Boundary Commission, NBC, Abuja, to make a case for the formal demarcation of the boundaries between Delta and Edo, Delta and Ondo and Delta and Bayelsa States, to check the incessant inter-communal clashes in some parts of the state as a result of boundary disputes.
It is worthy to also note that Sir Onyeme, as the Deputy Governor, has received a lot of investors on behalf of the governor, and, on each occasion, enlightened them on the areas they can invest on.
Naturally, it is the job of the Deputy Governor to present Staffs of office to traditional rulers in the state, and, within the past one year, the deputy governor has presented Staff of Office to several traditional rulers in the state and also encouraged peaceful co-existence among the people. Of course, he has equally inaugurated projects across the state.
One important issue now is, with the commencement of the second year in office of the governor, as a Deltan, what are you doing to encourage the government?
Yes! While we elected them into office for them to work for us, it is also very important for us to encourage them to succeed. How can you send someone on an errand and at the same time be putting clogs in the wheel of progress?
If we have people who are determined to work for all Deltans, putting the interests of Deltans first before selves, we should also encourage them to record success because, their success story is ours also. If the government succeeds, as it should, in the long run, we would all have succeeded.
For instance, on the Ughelli/Asaba road, it is impossible, and of course, would be, uncharitable for one to expect that only Governor Oborevwori will make use of it ; the same goes for the High Court Complex project;. The governor may not have any reason to make use of the court, but it is for all Deltans. The story is similar for all the projects and programmes of government.
Certainly, Delta is in safe hands with Governor Oborevwori and Deputy Governor Onyeme on the saddle of leadership; let us encourage them by engaging in positive thoughts, constructive criticism and positive actions and we all will always be proud to be Deltans.
Egugbo is the Senior Special Assistant, Media to the Governor of Delta State.
