Eminent persons, led by elder statesman, Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark (CON), have massively boosted the Delta State gubernatorial ambition of Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege.
At a three-hour ceremony attended by top personalities at the Asokoro home of Clark in Abuja, the former Federal Commissioner for Information who also led the struggle for the creation of Delta in 1991 emphatically restated his confidence in Senator Omo-Agege’s capacity to turn the fortunes of the state and its people around.
“My son, you will be the governor (in 2023). Your father who is no longer with us will be proud and happy to see me, his brother working to make his son our governor. Authority belongs to God and I want to pray for you,” Pa Clark stated, hoping that Omo-Agege’s administration would massively transform the state within eight years.
Clark disclosed that after seeing the massive pace of infrastructural and human capital development being executed by Omo-Agege in his Delta Central Senatorial District, he had advised him to spread such historically significant goodies to other parts of the state, and that the top legislatordid not hesitate in accelerating the development of areas outside his constituency. The Trumpet Gathered
“My vote is not because you are APC, but because you are the kind of governor I have been waiting for. A governor that will develop not only the whole of Delta, but Warri, which was the projected capital of Delta before it was changed. A governor that will not emerge by imposition. A governor that will serve the interests of the state and not of godfathers,” he said.
Omo-Agege stated that he, along with his running mate, Rt. Honourable Friday Osanebi and members of their gubernatorial campaign team were starting their first round of formal consultations with a visit to Chief Clark before they begin visits to various traditional rulers.
Omo-Agege said that his developmental impact through infrastructural projects, employment, humanitarian efforts and human capital development positively impacted every town and community in Delta Central. He stressed that he is seeking an opportunity to raise Delta to a level where its development can become easily comparable with that of Lagos, Rivers, Akwa-Ibom and other leading states.
Omo-Agege lamented the tragic deterioration of Warri City and infrastructural facilities across the state over the years. He noted that great opportunities exist to boost tourism, road transport, education, employment and the internally-generated revenue profile of the oil-producing state.
“It is said that ‘by their fruits you shall know them’ but my achievements in Delta Central Senatorial District and beyond speak for themselves. Among others, we have done solar street lights, provision of transformers , e-libraries and numerous other projects and we have ensured the allocation of N600 million for the construction of students’ hostel accommodation in Ukwuani Local Government Area.
“Under the 2022 national budget alone, we have over 750 projects, in 2021, we had about 600 and in 2020, we had about 450 projects” stated Senator Omo-Agege while reeling out numerous developmental projects, including Federal Polytechnic, Nigerian Law School Campus and several other projects that he facilitated for Delta State within four years.
“The Warri that you grew up in, is dead and now in great need of massive urban renewal and God willing, it is one of the major assignments that our administration will focus on if we emerge as Governor and Deputy Governor of Delta State. Okerenkoko, Ode-Itsekiri and other places can be developed and beautified to accommodate five-star hotels and become huge revenue-yielding areas like Hawaii in the United States.
“We can become what Lagos became; why can’t we generate enough internally-generated revenue to power massive development,” he said.
Omo-Agege was accompanied by Osanebi; Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo; a former Minister of the Niger Delta and DG of the campaign organization, Elder Godsday Orubebe; state chairman of the party, Elder Omeni Sobotie; former Chairman of the National Social Insurance Trust Fund, Mrs. Ngozi Olejeme; his Chief of Staff, Dr. Otive Igbuzor; chairman of the party in Delta Central Senatorial District,
Chief Paulinus Akpeki, among other chieftains and heavyweights.
Also, traditional rulers in Urhoboland have offered royal blessings to Omo-Agege.
In a meeting with the King’s under the aegis of Urhobo Traditional Rulers Council, the monarchs applauded Omo-Agege for attracting development to almost all the communities in the eight local government areas of Delta Central Senatorial District.
All the kings from the 24 kingdoms that make up Urhoboland attended the event which held at the palace of the Ohworode of Olomu Kingdom and Chairman, Urhobo Traditional Rulers Council, His Royal Majesty, Ovie Richard Ogbon Ogoni-Oghoro 1.
The royal father who is reputed to be Africa’s oldest traditional ruler, lauded the sterling performance of Omo-Agege and for restoring the voice of the Urhobo Nation at the national level.
“Senator Omo-Agege is a listening person. This is the second time he has come here to give report of his stewardship. This time he has covered the whole of Urhobo nation. Seeing is believing. Every part of the Urhobo Nation has been touched. We are glad. We know when you come to the pinnacle of administration in the state, all things will be better,” the centenarian said.
Highpoints of the meeting were the blessings and prayers offered to Omo-Agege and Osanebi by the royal fathers.
Orodje of Okpe Kingdom and Chairman, Delta State Traditional Rulers Council, HRM Felix Mujakperuo, Orhue 1, commended the federal legislator for touching all nooks and crannies of the Central Senatorial District.
“I want to use this opportunity to tell a little bit of my interaction with His Excellency. The Amukpe-Agbor Road was so bad that they were raping women and kidnapping people there. Before he came on board, I protested and wrote a letter to the Federal Government about that road during the Jonathan administration.
“During this administration, they relaunched the project and instead of starting it from Amukpe, they wanted to start it from Agbor. I protested and wrote to him and the Minister. Senator Omo-Agege called the Minister and the road was started from Amukpe.
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“Senator Omo-Agege does a lot of things for us. The Osubi Airport was closed. We wrote to the Federal Ministry of Aviation and copied him (Omo-Agege) that this is our battle for Urhoboland. He moved round, met the Minister of Aviation, Minister of Petroleum Resources and that is how the airport today had been given to Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
“And recently, the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) was going to close the airport, saying the airport was owing them. I phoned him and he said I shouldn’t worry. Overnight, that order was cancelled. That is why the airport is still existing today,” he said.
Giving his account of stewardship, Omo-Agege reeled out a catalogue projects he had attracted to all eight local government areas of the senatorial district.
“In the run up to the 2019 election, I came before this august body for prayers that will take me to Abuja as a senator. The prayers were offered and they worked. Not only did I emerge as the first reelected senator from Delta Central Senatorial District, I also emerged as the Deputy President of the Senate. There’s not a chance in the world that I will skip an opportunity to ask for these prayers again.
“At the time I asked for those prayers, I rendered an account of my stewardship of what I had done on behalf of the Urhobo people in the Senate. And I remember when I rendered account, some of my fathers pointed out that ‘All these things you are reeling out, I didn’t see anything in my Kingdom’. But I am sure I placed projects everywhere in this my second term,” he said.
The lawmaker promised to build a new Delta State anchored on Employment and Empowerment, Development, Good Governance and Enduring Peace and Security (EDGE).
Assuring that he would turn the fortunes of Delta around, and make it a giant construction site, he expressed regret that what the state collects from FAAC Allocation and 13 per cent derivation are not commensurate with the physical development on ground.
He said: “Borno, Ebonyi, Kaduna, Kano States and others that are not oil-producing states, hence do not receive 13 percent Derivation, have become construction sites. All our communities today are in a state of decay. I have chosen not to indict anybody but I can and will do better.”
Other Urhobo monarchs at the event included the Ovie of Agbarha Otor Kingdom, HRM Richard Oghenevwogaga, Ebelle JP. Okorefe 1; Ovie of Ughelli Kingdom, His Majesty, Wilson Ojakovo Oghoghovwe Oharisi III; Ovie of Agbon Kingdom, Ogurime-rime Ukori I, Michael Omeru; Ovie of Oghara Kingdom, HRM Noble Eshimetan, Orefe III; Okobaro of Ughievwen Kingdom, HRM Matthew Ediri Egbin, Owahwa 11, among others.
Also in Omo-Agege’s entourage was APC candidate for Delta Central Senatorial District, Chief Edeh Dafinone among others.
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