Come April 26, 2011 Nigerians will be going to the polls to elect their governors. This is an opportunity to correct the past. And many states are set to do just that. Perhaps none is as poised to put behind it an inglorious past like Delta, being were the worst actually happened this past twelve years of the country’s democracy. It is gladdening to see the wind of change all over Delta. And we cannot but congratulate Aniomas who have almost surprisingly led in this matter. The gallant outing of Aniomas for the DPP in the last national assembly election – despite PDP’s fierce rigging here and there and the declaration of PDP Senatorial candidate as ‘winner’ in the Delta North Senatorial election at gunpoint – is most commendable.
That today Anioma is 80 percent plus for DPP and Ogboru is no longer in doubt. That today, Aniomas have decided to break away from the apical shame that Ibori and his lieutenants represent is indubitable. Today, we see a Delta that sees coming to fore the hitherto lost dream of a great and pacesetting Delta. Call it the surefire dream! And for Nigerians who may not know: This is the sunshine deal that Ogboru has gone into with all Deltans. But as Deltans get set to go to the poll to realize this dream I must remind Aniomas of the great deceit and insincerity of the PDP, and especially of Ibori-Uduaghan as it has to do with Anioma’s gubernatorial ticket anytime hence.
James Ibori, Uduaghan’s mentor in politics, government and now from cell, usurped governance for eight years in Delta. He had an Anioma’s son as deputy. Ibori dumbed him after using him and picked his (Ibori’s) cousin whom he ‘appointed’ governor. By all standard who was better qualified between Benjamin Elue and Emmanuel Uduaghan to be governor of Delta State then? And if Uduaghan knew like we all know that Elue was better qualified why did he not decline the offer from his odidigborigbo of Africa and recommend Elue instead? If you don’t know the reason Ibori offered Uduaghan the guber seat then and the reason he (Uduaghan) also accepted it then, London has now made you to know.
After Ibori, Uduaghan, the new usurper-governor, did not even consider it fit to get an Anioma son or daughter as his deputy but went elsewhere to reward another lieutenant of Ibori who battled his (Ibori’s) silly cases here in Nigeria the Ibori way. Now that Ibori is taking the hard knocks from a judiciary that works can this Nigerian legal luminary, a SAN, resign his ‘appointment’ as deputy governor to go and defend his boss; after all, what is worth doing is worth doing well! Let him go to London if he will not join his learned colleague/s in jail and forget his silk for a couple of years. It is only here people empty common treasuries to buy ‘justice’ from justices!
Uduaghan is thinking of continuing in Asaba. Who is his running mate? Again, not an Anioma! While Uduaghan has consistently been denying Anioma the deputy office and consistently appointing Aniomas as SSG instead, Great Ogboru has ALWAYS had an Anioma as his deputy gubernatorial candidate. Between Ogboru and Uduaghan who is to be trusted for an eventual Anioma governor in Delta? Though the answer is obvious the imbedded wisdom in the Latin phrase: a posse ad esse (from the possible to the actual) may make it even more obvious. While Ibori altogether dumped the ‘possible’ (Elue) and Uduaghan since then bothered not to give room for the ‘possible’ (a deputy), Ogboru has consistently created and remain in the realm of the possible which begets the ‘actual’ (the governor). The ‘possible’ is the route to the goal. Ogboru is on course and has remained so; the sayings in classics that have abided till our days are the sayings of the wise. Uduaghan has not even created a route yet promising a goal!
By the way: Why did Uduaghan not step down for an Anioma now, after usurping governance for four years? Why must he want to remain till 2015? Goodluck Jonathan has told the world that he would govern Nigeria for four years if elected. What then does Uduaghan, who is pretending now to fly in Jonathan’s wings thinking that is now his only rescue, need another four years for to govern not Nigeria, but Delta; and that is after being a commissioner and SSG for almost eight years.
If governors like Fashola are talking of another term we can understand. In four years Fashola has done ten times over what Ibori and Uduaghan did in Delta in twelve years. Lagos has no oil, Delta has! Fashola was elected in the main, Uduaghan was not! If governors like Oshiomole will be talking of second term whenever his first tenure is gone we can understand. With very meager resources coming from the centre he has been able to give Edo in barely two years what Ibori and Uduaghan may not have given Deltans in twelve years. And Oshiomole was elected, Ibori and Uduaghan were not! Uduaghan wants to remain in Asaba to continue with the same reason why he and his boss railroaded themselves into politics and government in the first place! Good enough Deltans and Aniomas already know this well, and London has told them even too well.
Just as I was putting this work together I received in my mails a perfectly confirmatory message to this piece from OGBORU4GOV: “Uduaghan is a wicked deceiver. He promised to support ANIOMA FOR GOVERNOR IN 2015 but ran to court to stay in office till 2019! It was … Great Ogboru, a true Deltan and bonafide Anioma son, who stopped this evil and deceitful plot. Anioma nation, Ogboru and Tilije are our own. Vote for them. Vote for the unstoppable change”.
For me, the coincidence doubly tells the story of the apparent collapse of darkness in Delta State and the ushering in of light. Therefore, let not Aniomas and indeed all Deltans allow the few cohorts of Ibori and Uduaghan in their midst who have fed sumptuously, and overflowing fat at the expense of our common treasury and wellbeing derail democracy, rubbish our priceless votes and deny us of our common goal. Grapevine has it that they have driven cash to the streets, and armed area boys and the cult boys with arms. Let the truth we know guide us as we go to the polls and as we remain there to defend our votes. Let us not allow the truth to be suppressed for suppression veri suggestio falsi – suppression of truth is suggestion of the false! The whole world now knows that Ibori-Uduaghan is false. Let us not allow the truth to be suppressed. As we did or voted in the National Assembly election even now much more! As we tried to defend our votes (despite the brute offence from PDP) even now much more!
