With-over-19-years-of-the-pdp-led-delta-state-government-and-no-improvement-on-the-states-economy-the-need-for-governor-okowa-to-be-rejected-and-voted-out-in-his-2019-re-election-bid
September 7, 2020 | News
WITH OVER 19 YEARS OF THE PDP-LED DELTA STATE GOVERNMENT AND NO IMPROVEMENT ON THE STATE’S ECONOMY - THE NEED FOR GOVERNOR OKOWA TO BE REJECTED AND VOTED OUT IN HIS 2019 RE-ELECTION BID
Without mincing words, Delta State, despite being one of the most blessed States in the country with its enormous oil and gas wealth, has unfortunately had the worst set of political leaders since 1999 till date. To put it more bluntly, the said Delta State Government, which has been under the clutches of the PDP since 1999, is still being led by the said PDP cabal; which had produced the current Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, and all of their tentacles of supporters and praise-singers in the Delta State Government all these years. These so-called political leaders of Delta State, have been running and handling the vast Delta State Resources/wealth with reckless abandon and impunity as if it is their private business.
The situation in Delta State is so sad and pathetic. Delta State is a practical example of the unfortunate status most African countries finds themselves in presently; where a particular set of political leaders over the years have used every trick, they can muster to remain in government domain and refuse the peoples’ voice, votes and interests to count or matter in their development. And when the people are denied the right to choose their preferred political leaders, what we have evident over the years are political leaders without vision, focus and without sacrificial commitment.
Every time one looks around Delta State, compare what one sees with what the State earns and accrues as revenue on a monthly/yearly basis, one is left seriously disturbed as to how long must we remain in such pathetic condition? But of course, those that are ‘gaining’ and ‘benefitting’ from the system (no matter how distorted it is), will argue here and tell you otherwise that “all is well” – “the Government is working”. Since the inception of Democratic rule from 1999 till date, it seems like Delta State has practically been run under ground by past and present political leaders of the PDP Government in Delta State; for nothing seems to be working. As sad as this may sound, we are currently witnessing the “Third Era” of the said PDP-dynasty, which if Deltans do not wake up from their slumber, might continue for another four years after the first tenure of Governor Okowa. But having been in the Delta State Government in the last 19 years plus, without any positive and long-lasting change and development in the lives of the masses and the general economic outlook of the State, we believe it is expedient for Deltans and Nigerians in the State to overwhelmingly reject and vote out Governor Ifeanyi Okowa in his re-election bid come 2019 gubernatorial elections. While he has the right as a Nigerian and politician, to re-contest in the said election, however, the people should also realize that the power lies in their hands to vote Okowa out of Delta State Government House for his poor performance.
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa can best be described as an ‘offshoot’ and more of a ‘continuation’ of this PDP-led mis-governance of Delta State. This had made many stakeholders like us to not expect much (or any) sustainable change at all with regards to the development of Delta State. This fear started playing out immediately Governor Okowa came on board. We can see this when we look at every of the actions, statements and body language of the Delta State Governor since he came into power in 2015. For instance, the same set of persons (whose pedigree and questionable integrity are of great concern), most of whom were in the deplorable past two governments, were still absorbed by the Okowa administration. From his list of Commissioners, to his so-called Special Advisers and down to his Senior Special Assistants of one thing or the other, which are nothing but “jobs for the boys.” From the created Asaba Development Agency, Delta State Investment Development Agency, appointment of a Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on so-called Social Advocacy, his inauguration of a 30-man so-called Advisory and Peace Building Council, to the restructuring of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) by amending the law setting up DESOPADEC in line with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) model, etc. all of which are primarily aimed at creating more ‘Executive’ jobs for the boys.
Even the launched five Entrepreneurship programmes under the State’s Job and Wealth Creation Scheme known as ‘OkowaPlus’, has not yielded much results as anticipated because of the way and manner the programmes were and still being handled. With all the hype, noise made and publicity stunts of the said “job and Wealth Creation Scheme, which includes Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme (YAGEP), Skills Training and Entrepreneurship Programme (STEP), Production and Processing Support Programme (PPSP), Development of Agro-Industries and Extension of Micro-credit, one would have thought that by now, many of our jobless youths would have been properly engaged.
As far as we can tell, Okowa’s only priority is to create useless Office portfolios and positions to appoint politicians that are really doing nothing, other than to drive in his convoy/retinue and accompany him to wherever he goes to. They do this and waste public funds to buy and maintain the many official cars they use in the name of doing government work. The most annoying part is that, with Salaries not being paid; roads and other public-utility-infrastructure at their worst deplorable state; litany of abandoned infrastructure projects that were used as avenues to siphon State funds; Government in serious debts and a ‘sustained culture’ of mismanagement/misappropriation of public funds in government circles, etc, the Okowa PDP-led Government still had the audacity to recently appoint more Commissioners in his cabinet, and other Executive Directors in DESOPADEC Board and the State’s Internal Revenue Board. We could not help but surely conclude that the Okowa PDP-led Delta State Government is not only clueless and focus-less, but also practically an irresponsible and unaccountable in the management of the State’s resources. How can a Government that has not been able to pay Delta State pensioners and pay its workforce up to date, still be nominating Government appointees few months to the end of its tenure? Public funds that ought to have been used by his administration to build infrastructure are used for funding frivolous and imaginary portfolios created/appointed by the Government. The Okowa-led Delta State Government even pay Government workers as at when due, and they have to wait most of the times for Federal Government allocations before they can do anything in this regard. Shame on Delta State Government and Delta State lawmakers that have become their ‘errand boys’ placed in the Delta State House of Assembly (DSHA) to only do the biddings of the State Governor.
Surprisingly, in the midst of all this, Delta State Governments are very good at making so much noise in public over the insignificant things they do. The whole ‘publicity stunts’ and self-praise-singing by the PDP-led past and present Delta Governments are all part of their usual grand design to create the atmosphere for their re-election and continuous stay in power. But it has become more evident that the Okowa PDP-led Government is clueless, focus-less, and lack of ideas to develop and transform the State. They are always organizing Town Hall meetings with their selected supporters, Traditional Rulers and paid praise-singers. We can say that the Okowa Government is the most ignorant the PDP-led administrations in Delta State. At least, Ibori and Uduaghan can boast of some things they evidently left as legacies in the State. But there are no visible projects today which the Okowa administration can boast of as what they have done. The Delta State Governor simply has a stone heart, and he does not care about the yearnings and aspirations of the people. Governor Okowa’s achievements are only seen on social media and papers. Whereas in reality, what we have are bad state of major roads with potholes as his achievements. The few good roads that we see in the State are mostly done by NDDC and not by the State Government. In fact, what Okowa has as achievements of his administration include the following: the abandonment of the Osubi Warri Airstrip Expansion/Second Runway Project to Standard Airport, the abandonment of Warri Industrial Park project, the Independent Power Station, the Effurun—Ughelli-Isoko-Asaba Dual Express Road, the re-dualization express road (with drainage) of the failed BRT Lane on the famous Warri-Sapele/Effurun-Sapele Road that presently runs from Enerhen Junction to Effurun Roundabout, Some abandoned renovation school projects, the Information & Communication Technology (ICT) Park, the Effurun-Eku road, Koko Port Free Trade Zone, Trans Warri – Ode Itsekiri Road and Bridges, etc.
As we speak, even the ‘basic infrastructural amenities’ like regular power supply, good road networks, a friendly business environment and friendly tax policies are not evident in Delta State. Not to mention the nefarious activities of Area Boys that are obviously discouraging/driving away prospective investors from the State. All the Ports around Delta State are not functional. There is no guaranteed security in Delta State as the ‘ill-equipped’ security operatives are left struggling with the battle against kidnappers, armed robbers and other criminal elements. When the basic infrastructures are not there, and no guaranteed security, how then will investors be attracted to come and invest in the State? Today, big oil companies like Shell (SPDC), and others have left Delta State and many are still planning to leave to invest in other States like Edo, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Lagos etc, simply because of the ‘unfriendly business’ environment in the State. The PDP-led 19 years Government in Delta State initiated and promoted all kinds and attributes of ‘youth restiveness/violence’ in Delta State. It was during this period of 19 years plus of PDP administration that violent crimes unheard before now in Delta State, became so common. Crimes like kidnapping, high-degree armed robbery, political killings/assassinations, youth restiveness, extortion and oppression in the name of ‘Deve’, etc. can be said to have started from under these politicians and have become common place in Delta State. Even with the recent signing into law by Okowa, the Delta State Public and Private Properties Protection Bill 2018, which outlaws illegal collections, harassment and forceful entry by touts into development sites in the name of “deve”, nothing has been witnessed in terms of the enforcement of the said law, as such, the bad practice is still prevalent - making prospective investors and property developers to continue leaving the State or discouraged from investing in the State.
When the roll call of performing Governors is called, truth is Okowa will not be among the best ten as reported by some media houses. Whatever indices and parameters they use in judging it will never make Okowa count among them. And that is because he has not really done anything to transform the fortunes of majority of Deltans. Okowa forgets that the judgment of a State in Nigeria is not always seen from within but from outside the State. How can anyone or a media house name Okowa amongst the best performing Governors – someone who cannot boast of one project that he has started and completed, or has completed any of the projects initiated by his predecessor Uduaghan, be labelled as one of the ten performing Governors? Where are the projects that made him a performing Governor? We should remove sentiments, and simply tell ourselves the truth. Okowa is nothing but a stoned-heart Governor who is obviously clueless. Okowa’s led administration is a complete failure. Okowa is one of the least, among the governors in the entire country, by my rating on his performance. Almost four years in office, no one has heard any tangible project carried out by this administration. Yet, they keep telling us that he has turned the State into a ‘construction site’. Just his “errand aides” and his “Internet rodents” that can testify to his supposed performance. But only if they get it from the facebook profile of the Personal Assistant on Special Duties, who naturally should be Special Adviser (S.A) on Social Media. Remove him and Okowa’s Chief Press Secretary, who is always preaching the SMART agenda of the principal from the picture, and the Governor will be daily taunted on the pages of newspapers, News Websites and Blogs for “non-performance.”
In this very administration, and even throughout the 19 years of the PDP-led Government in Delta State, we have seen paupers become millionaires and comfortable men become multi-millionaires to the detriment of Deltans who stood under the sun and in the rain to ‘supposedly’ vote for them.
We can continue to say a lot of things that are wrong with this current Delta State Government and his PDP-led Government predecessors, but we will leave well-meaning Deltans and the Nigerian public to do the rest analysis of Okowa’s performance after almost 4 years, as well the 19 years plus of the PDP-led Government in the State. But let it be known that Deltans have passed their verdicts and it is not in the favour of Governor Okowa and his reported ambition in 2019. Hence, we are making this clarion call to all Deltans that Governor Okowa should be rejected and voted out of Government at the 2019 polls. His re-election bid should be cut short at the polls at the 2019 gubernatorial election.
Zik Gbemre.
We Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes as if Those Were Our Causes
Without mincing words, Delta State, despite being one of the most blessed States in the country with its enormous oil and gas wealth, has unfortunately had the worst set of political leaders since 1999 till date. To put it more bluntly, the said Delta State Government, which has been under the clutches of the PDP since 1999, is still being led by the said PDP cabal; which had produced the current Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, and all of their tentacles of supporters and praise-singers in the Delta State Government all these years. These so-called political leaders of Delta State, have been running and handling the vast Delta State Resources/wealth with reckless abandon and impunity as if it is their private business.
The situation in Delta State is so sad and pathetic. Delta State is a practical example of the unfortunate status most African countries finds themselves in presently; where a particular set of political leaders over the years have used every trick, they can muster to remain in government domain and refuse the peoples’ voice, votes and interests to count or matter in their development. And when the people are denied the right to choose their preferred political leaders, what we have evident over the years are political leaders without vision, focus and without sacrificial commitment.
Every time one looks around Delta State, compare what one sees with what the State earns and accrues as revenue on a monthly/yearly basis, one is left seriously disturbed as to how long must we remain in such pathetic condition? But of course, those that are ‘gaining’ and ‘benefitting’ from the system (no matter how distorted it is), will argue here and tell you otherwise that “all is well” – “the Government is working”. Since the inception of Democratic rule from 1999 till date, it seems like Delta State has practically been run under ground by past and present political leaders of the PDP Government in Delta State; for nothing seems to be working. As sad as this may sound, we are currently witnessing the “Third Era” of the said PDP-dynasty, which if Deltans do not wake up from their slumber, might continue for another four years after the first tenure of Governor Okowa. But having been in the Delta State Government in the last 19 years plus, without any positive and long-lasting change and development in the lives of the masses and the general economic outlook of the State, we believe it is expedient for Deltans and Nigerians in the State to overwhelmingly reject and vote out Governor Ifeanyi Okowa in his re-election bid come 2019 gubernatorial elections. While he has the right as a Nigerian and politician, to re-contest in the said election, however, the people should also realize that the power lies in their hands to vote Okowa out of Delta State Government House for his poor performance.
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa can best be described as an ‘offshoot’ and more of a ‘continuation’ of this PDP-led mis-governance of Delta State. This had made many stakeholders like us to not expect much (or any) sustainable change at all with regards to the development of Delta State. This fear started playing out immediately Governor Okowa came on board. We can see this when we look at every of the actions, statements and body language of the Delta State Governor since he came into power in 2015. For instance, the same set of persons (whose pedigree and questionable integrity are of great concern), most of whom were in the deplorable past two governments, were still absorbed by the Okowa administration. From his list of Commissioners, to his so-called Special Advisers and down to his Senior Special Assistants of one thing or the other, which are nothing but “jobs for the boys.” From the created Asaba Development Agency, Delta State Investment Development Agency, appointment of a Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on so-called Social Advocacy, his inauguration of a 30-man so-called Advisory and Peace Building Council, to the restructuring of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) by amending the law setting up DESOPADEC in line with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) model, etc. all of which are primarily aimed at creating more ‘Executive’ jobs for the boys.
Even the launched five Entrepreneurship programmes under the State’s Job and Wealth Creation Scheme known as ‘OkowaPlus’, has not yielded much results as anticipated because of the way and manner the programmes were and still being handled. With all the hype, noise made and publicity stunts of the said “job and Wealth Creation Scheme, which includes Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme (YAGEP), Skills Training and Entrepreneurship Programme (STEP), Production and Processing Support Programme (PPSP), Development of Agro-Industries and Extension of Micro-credit, one would have thought that by now, many of our jobless youths would have been properly engaged.
As far as we can tell, Okowa’s only priority is to create useless Office portfolios and positions to appoint politicians that are really doing nothing, other than to drive in his convoy/retinue and accompany him to wherever he goes to. They do this and waste public funds to buy and maintain the many official cars they use in the name of doing government work. The most annoying part is that, with Salaries not being paid; roads and other public-utility-infrastructure at their worst deplorable state; litany of abandoned infrastructure projects that were used as avenues to siphon State funds; Government in serious debts and a ‘sustained culture’ of mismanagement/misappropriation of public funds in government circles, etc, the Okowa PDP-led Government still had the audacity to recently appoint more Commissioners in his cabinet, and other Executive Directors in DESOPADEC Board and the State’s Internal Revenue Board. We could not help but surely conclude that the Okowa PDP-led Delta State Government is not only clueless and focus-less, but also practically an irresponsible and unaccountable in the management of the State’s resources. How can a Government that has not been able to pay Delta State pensioners and pay its workforce up to date, still be nominating Government appointees few months to the end of its tenure? Public funds that ought to have been used by his administration to build infrastructure are used for funding frivolous and imaginary portfolios created/appointed by the Government. The Okowa-led Delta State Government even pay Government workers as at when due, and they have to wait most of the times for Federal Government allocations before they can do anything in this regard. Shame on Delta State Government and Delta State lawmakers that have become their ‘errand boys’ placed in the Delta State House of Assembly (DSHA) to only do the biddings of the State Governor.
Surprisingly, in the midst of all this, Delta State Governments are very good at making so much noise in public over the insignificant things they do. The whole ‘publicity stunts’ and self-praise-singing by the PDP-led past and present Delta Governments are all part of their usual grand design to create the atmosphere for their re-election and continuous stay in power. But it has become more evident that the Okowa PDP-led Government is clueless, focus-less, and lack of ideas to develop and transform the State. They are always organizing Town Hall meetings with their selected supporters, Traditional Rulers and paid praise-singers. We can say that the Okowa Government is the most ignorant the PDP-led administrations in Delta State. At least, Ibori and Uduaghan can boast of some things they evidently left as legacies in the State. But there are no visible projects today which the Okowa administration can boast of as what they have done. The Delta State Governor simply has a stone heart, and he does not care about the yearnings and aspirations of the people. Governor Okowa’s achievements are only seen on social media and papers. Whereas in reality, what we have are bad state of major roads with potholes as his achievements. The few good roads that we see in the State are mostly done by NDDC and not by the State Government. In fact, what Okowa has as achievements of his administration include the following: the abandonment of the Osubi Warri Airstrip Expansion/Second Runway Project to Standard Airport, the abandonment of Warri Industrial Park project, the Independent Power Station, the Effurun—Ughelli-Isoko-Asaba Dual Express Road, the re-dualization express road (with drainage) of the failed BRT Lane on the famous Warri-Sapele/Effurun-Sapele Road that presently runs from Enerhen Junction to Effurun Roundabout, Some abandoned renovation school projects, the Information & Communication Technology (ICT) Park, the Effurun-Eku road, Koko Port Free Trade Zone, Trans Warri – Ode Itsekiri Road and Bridges, etc.
As we speak, even the ‘basic infrastructural amenities’ like regular power supply, good road networks, a friendly business environment and friendly tax policies are not evident in Delta State. Not to mention the nefarious activities of Area Boys that are obviously discouraging/driving away prospective investors from the State. All the Ports around Delta State are not functional. There is no guaranteed security in Delta State as the ‘ill-equipped’ security operatives are left struggling with the battle against kidnappers, armed robbers and other criminal elements. When the basic infrastructures are not there, and no guaranteed security, how then will investors be attracted to come and invest in the State? Today, big oil companies like Shell (SPDC), and others have left Delta State and many are still planning to leave to invest in other States like Edo, Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Lagos etc, simply because of the ‘unfriendly business’ environment in the State. The PDP-led 19 years Government in Delta State initiated and promoted all kinds and attributes of ‘youth restiveness/violence’ in Delta State. It was during this period of 19 years plus of PDP administration that violent crimes unheard before now in Delta State, became so common. Crimes like kidnapping, high-degree armed robbery, political killings/assassinations, youth restiveness, extortion and oppression in the name of ‘Deve’, etc. can be said to have started from under these politicians and have become common place in Delta State. Even with the recent signing into law by Okowa, the Delta State Public and Private Properties Protection Bill 2018, which outlaws illegal collections, harassment and forceful entry by touts into development sites in the name of “deve”, nothing has been witnessed in terms of the enforcement of the said law, as such, the bad practice is still prevalent - making prospective investors and property developers to continue leaving the State or discouraged from investing in the State.
When the roll call of performing Governors is called, truth is Okowa will not be among the best ten as reported by some media houses. Whatever indices and parameters they use in judging it will never make Okowa count among them. And that is because he has not really done anything to transform the fortunes of majority of Deltans. Okowa forgets that the judgment of a State in Nigeria is not always seen from within but from outside the State. How can anyone or a media house name Okowa amongst the best performing Governors – someone who cannot boast of one project that he has started and completed, or has completed any of the projects initiated by his predecessor Uduaghan, be labelled as one of the ten performing Governors? Where are the projects that made him a performing Governor? We should remove sentiments, and simply tell ourselves the truth. Okowa is nothing but a stoned-heart Governor who is obviously clueless. Okowa’s led administration is a complete failure. Okowa is one of the least, among the governors in the entire country, by my rating on his performance. Almost four years in office, no one has heard any tangible project carried out by this administration. Yet, they keep telling us that he has turned the State into a ‘construction site’. Just his “errand aides” and his “Internet rodents” that can testify to his supposed performance. But only if they get it from the facebook profile of the Personal Assistant on Special Duties, who naturally should be Special Adviser (S.A) on Social Media. Remove him and Okowa’s Chief Press Secretary, who is always preaching the SMART agenda of the principal from the picture, and the Governor will be daily taunted on the pages of newspapers, News Websites and Blogs for “non-performance.”
In this very administration, and even throughout the 19 years of the PDP-led Government in Delta State, we have seen paupers become millionaires and comfortable men become multi-millionaires to the detriment of Deltans who stood under the sun and in the rain to ‘supposedly’ vote for them.
We can continue to say a lot of things that are wrong with this current Delta State Government and his PDP-led Government predecessors, but we will leave well-meaning Deltans and the Nigerian public to do the rest analysis of Okowa’s performance after almost 4 years, as well the 19 years plus of the PDP-led Government in the State. But let it be known that Deltans have passed their verdicts and it is not in the favour of Governor Okowa and his reported ambition in 2019. Hence, we are making this clarion call to all Deltans that Governor Okowa should be rejected and voted out of Government at the 2019 polls. His re-election bid should be cut short at the polls at the 2019 gubernatorial election.
Zik Gbemre.
We Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes as if Those Were Our Causes