With bold public declarations and powerful alliances, a dominant pressure group, Delta’s Political Vanguard and the People Democratic Party Senatorial Candidate, Michael Diden AKA Ejele have launched a campaign for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
As the 2027 elections inch closer, Delta’s two political giants, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), appear locked in a strange competition, not just against each other, but over who gets Tinubu’s endorsement.
Tinubu is now the most valuable political currency in Delta State right now, and whether it’s love or leverage, both parties are spending that currency fast.
He has become either the bride or the bait, depending on who you ask. One thing is clear: the Tinubu factor is redefining Delta’s political balance.
DUG dumps PDP, courts Tinubu through APC
This weekend, the Delta Unity Group (DUG), a powerful political bloc that preferred David Edevbie as the party’s 2023 gubernatorial candidate, formally defected to the APC in Agbor. The event was attended by APC national and regional heavyweights including party chairman Alhaji Umar Ganduje, Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo, and Senator Ovie Omo-Agege.
At the event, the senator representing Delta North, Senator Ned Nwoko, made it clear that Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, is not welcome in the All Progressives Congress (APC). Nwoko stated that the Delta APC will defeat the governor and his party, the PDP, in the 2027 general elections.
Read also: REVEALED: Tinubu’s secret plot to stop mass APC defection from Buhari’s loyalists exposed
Senator Ned Nwoko, now a staunch APC figure, did not mince words. Declaring the PDP’s 25-year rule over Delta “corrupt and expired,” he made it clear that Tinubu is the rallying point for change, but not everyone is welcome on the new train.
“Oborevwori wants to come to APC, but tell him to stay where he is. He will be defeated. We don’t want him in APC,” Nwoko declared.
Nwoko’s assertion was made against the backdrop of President Tinubu’s purported interest in winning Delta State in 2027. According to Nwoko, this might be the reason behind Oborevwori’s desperation to join APC. However, he maintained that the party doesn’t need the governor’s membership to win Delta State.
“Don’t let anyone doubt who you are. The next governor will be formed by you. As you go home, tell them that the next governor of Delta State will be formed by the APC. Today, we are emboldened and happy that a large political group like the DUG is following my footsteps in joining the APC,” Nwoko said.
Speaking in the same vein, former Deputy President of the Nigerian Senate and APC 2023 governorship candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege while welcoming rank-and-file PDP members, maintains that Oborevwori and his predecessor, Ifeanyi Okowa, are persona non grata in the APC.
He insists that APC’s momentum, now backed by over 60% of former PDP members since 2023, is enough to deliver the presidency and sweep Delta’s legislative seats.
For him, Tinubu is neither bait nor bride, he is the reason to purge the old guard and build a new order in Delta.
Ejele, DPV lunch “Gate-to-Gate” campaign for Tinubu
But as the APC surges ahead with Tinubu as its poster figure, some within the PDP are playing a more nuanced game—supporting Tinubu without leaving their party.
In a now-viral video, Hon. Michael Diden, aka Ejele, Chairman of the Delta Political Vanguard (DPV), the group that backed Sheriff Oborevwori during the 2022 primaries, spoke of a dual allegiance: loyalty to the PDP, and unwavering support for Tinubu.
“Let me say it again. I have not decamped. But I am following our leaders, including our Governor, who said if you love him, support President Tinubu,” Didan declared, sending ripples across the political spectrum.
Echoing the sentiments of the Delta Traditional Rulers Council, led by the Orodje of Okpe, Ejele to declare DPV support for Tinubu’s reelection, he drew parallels with past missteps in the South-South, particularly the political gamble against Goodluck Jonathan, warning: “We should not repeat the mistake.”
Perhaps the most telling moment of DPV’s new found love for Tinubu was the launch of a grassroots campaign for Tinubu called “Gate-to-Gate.” According to Diden, the structure will campaign “from the gate to the door, and from the door to the bedroom,” pushing Tinubu’s reelection deep into communities, without necessarily abandoning the PDP.
This strategy suggests that for many within Delta PDP, Tinubu is less an opponent and more a national bride worth aligning with, even if discreetly.
The bordering question is, who now has Tinubu’s Heart in Delta? Is Tinubu the bride, being courted by both parties for electoral advantage? Or is he the bait, a name dropped by both PDP and APC players to secure their relevance and reposition their futures?
As DUG crosses over, DPV stays in but looks out, and the APC shores up its fortress with Tinubu banners flying high, one thing is undeniable: Tinubu is currently the most valuable political asset in Delta State.
Whether it’s admiration or strategic advantage, both sides are quickly cashing in on that asset.
