2023 governorship: Zoning debate heats up Delta

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s recent comments on the qualities he expects his successor to possess has become a subject of heated debate amongst various stakeholders in Delta State ahead of the 2023 Governorship Elections even as many challenge Urhobo leaders’ insistence that it is their turn to produce Okowa’s successor, reports Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu

Although informed observers anticipated that zoning will likely play a major role in determining who will succeed Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State in 2023, not many envisaged that the zoning debate would heat up the political scene of the South-south state so soon. But our investigation shows that since last month, when Okowa openly gave a hint on the type of successor he would be willing to hand over power to, the zoning debate has garnered stronger steam and is currently dominating political discussions in the area.

 

What Okowa said

Governor Okowa opened up on the kind of governor he would want Deltans to have after him at the empowerment of constituents of Aniocha/Oshimili Federal Constituency, an event organised by the constituency’s representative and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Rep. Ndudi Elumelu, in Asaba.

Reacting to the debate on his likely successor, the governor said at the event: “Whosoever that is coming to rule this state must be ready to ensure that there is fairness, justice and equity in everything.

“We want somebody who will come to Asaba and see it as his own, rather than feel that Asaba as headquarters is misplaced. It ought not to be.”

He also said that the process of picking a successor that would govern the state fairly, equitably and justly, would begin this month.

Also more recently, the governor was quoted as telling some newsmen that zoning in the state was not really formalised. “There was no formal meeting where an agreement was reached on zoning and that is the truth as at today. It means that whatever we are doing or talking about today is about fairness, equity and how to define what is fair and what is equitable and hinged on justice,” he was quoted as saying in an interaction.

 

The debate

Perhaps, one of the most audible voices on the issue of zoning the next governorship seat to the Urhobo of Delta Central Senatorial District today is the former Minister of State for Education, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi, who has also told whoever would listen that he would be contesting for the plum seat in 2023. He repeatedly said that “nothing would stop the chances of the Urhobo people to produce the successor of the current Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, in the next gubernatorial election in 2023.”

According to him, Governor Okowa is “ready to respect the existing zoning arrangement for the governorship position in the state among the senatorial districts of the state,” adding that Okowa owes Urhobo indigenes the chance of producing the next candidate for the governorship seat in 2023.

Speaking in Yenagoa at a reception organised in his honour by the Urhobo Indigenes in Bayelsa State, Gbagi said the Urhobo nation’s massive support for the Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa’s administration is based on the existing agreement on rotation.

He said “All of you here would have shot yourself on the foot, you would have denied yourself, your children, the born and yet unborn grandchildren were you not to defend what God has given to you. There is no discussion while we will relax and work with our other two senatorial districts. Nothing on earth would remove governorship from Urhobo land. Turn by turn; we have done ours. It has gone round. It went to the South, it left the south. It went to the north and by the natural act of God; it is coming back to us”

According to Gbagi, “In 1998 and 1999, when it was then decided that we are going to play politics, we were three Urohobos, apart from other senatorial districts. It was all pre-planned that Urhobo would produce the governor of Delta State as of that time, it was Chief James Ibori, Professor Sam Oyovbaire and myself that ran the governorship primaries in Delta State.”

“As it is in my nature, when Chief James Ibori emerged as governor, we did not run away from the party. He did his tenure, finished and left. But I was the main agitator for Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as of that time to do governorship on the basis of zoning”.

He also pleaded with the Urhobo indigenes to continue to show support for the administration of Gov. Okowa to allow the PDP administration in Delta State finish strong. “What I want you people to do and continuously do is to pray for Okowa to finish strong. Okowa is a very wise politician; Okowa knows how we started. If I do over 200 articles on why everybody should let Okowa continue its first and second term, it is because we have an agreement. We have a lot of Urhobos trying to contest today under the platform of our party but they are not all Urhobo,” he said.

But other stakeholders have challenged the existence of a zoning formula in the state, especially the argument that the governorship position should be zoned on the basis of senatorial districts. It is on record that between 1999 and today, all the three senatorial zones have produced state governors, all of whom served three terms. They include Governors James Ibori, Emmanuel Uduaghan and Ifeanyi Okowa, representing the three senatorial districts.

So, while some Urhobo leaders based their demand to produce the next governor on the need to return power to the Delta Central Senatorial Zone, other stakeholders alleged that zoning in Delta was never based on senatorial districts but on ethnic nationalities.

For example, just last week, some Ijaw leaders, youths and women from about seven councils of Delta State, argued that Ijaw ethnic nationality should be allowed to produce the next governor in 2023. They called on other ethnic nationalities to support a candidate of Ijaw extraction.

They made the demand after a meeting in Warri, Delta State, where they lamented that in spite of making huge sacrifices, contributing to the socio-economic sustenance of the state and supporting other ethnic nationalities over the years, they had not been allowed to produce a governor of the state.

The meeting, according to reports, was attended by influential Ijaw leaders, including Senator James Manager, Wing Commander Peter Biakpara (rtd.), President Ijaw National Congress (INC), Prof. Benjamin Okaba, Catholic Bishop of Bomadi Diocese, Hyacinth Egbebo, Prof Biliki Isaiah, Hon. Nicholas Mutu and Mrs. Bamuza Mutu, among others.

In a communiqué, reportedly signed at the end of the meeting by former Minister of Police Affairs, Alaowei Broderick Bozimo, Chief Godspower Gbenekama, and Elder Edmund Tiemo, they said they had been active in the socio-economic and political affairs since the days of Western and Mid-Western regions, Bendel State and now Delta State.

They also pointed out that they were at the forefront of the struggle for the creation of Delta State and that despite the human and socio-economic contributions of the Ijaw to the state, their communities do not have commiserate infrastructure development.

They noted that Chief Dennis Osadebey of Anioma was the Premier of the defunct Mid-Western Region, when it was created in 1963 with Chief Jereton Marierie from Urhobo as Governor.

“In the present Delta State, the Ijaw massively supported Olorogun Felix Ibru and Chief James Ibori from Urhobo ethnic nationality, Emmanuel Uduaghan (Itsekiri) and Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa (Anioma) ethnic nationality as governor.

“In the spirit of fairness, equity and brotherhood, we appeal to the other ethnic nationalities of the state to support a candidate of Ijaw extraction for the governorship in 2023,” the communiqué reads.

They commended Okowa for his infrastructure development of the state, his vision for a stronger Delta and urged the Ijaw to continue to support Okowa’s administration.

Even before Okowa’s comments last month, the Delta South Political Assembly (DESPA) in Delta State, cautioned Delta Central (Urhobo) politicians when some stakeholders from Urhobo floated a political movement, DC-03, to propagate the governorship quest of Urhobo ethnic group in 2023 “not to mislead Deltans on the zoning formula.”

The Director of Media of DESPA, Abobo Blessing, in a statement said: “The Delta Central political movement, DC-03 can focus on their Urhobo governorship ambition come 2023 since it is their constitutional right to do so. The movement being floated by the cream of Urhobo political leaders is free to propagate their course of championing Urhobo governorship agenda.

“What we, however, disagree with them is where they are making reference to the settled issue of the non-existent zoning formula based on the senatorial districts. Of course, some of the members of the said DC-03 who have contested the PDP primary elections in 2006 and 2014 together with other aspirants from the Delta North and South senatorial districts know that there is nothing like zoning in Delta State PDP based on senatorial districts.

“Let us call a spade a spade. We cannot continue to deceive ourselves and expect that what you refused to do yesterday, others will not follow the same recalcitrant steps? The zoning formula in the state that we should continue to uphold is based on ethnic groups.

“The pendulum by all fairness favours Ijaw and the Isoko ethnic groups. Zoning by ethnic groups, which is being practiced since 1999, is consistent with the 1999 Constitution, especially chapter two of the Constitution as well as the PDP Constitution, 2017,” the group said.

Also, a group, the Tony Amechi Foundation (TAF) is not impressed with Okowa’s suggestion that he would influence the choice of his successor. They urged the governor “to stop playing God on who would succeed him as the governor of the state in 2023.”

The Foundation, in a statement by its Director of Communication, Sharon Isaiah, said “it is only God who would decide the governor’s successor and not the governor himself,” adding that “the 2023 polls in the state would mark the end of the grip of the Peoples Democratic Party on the state.”

The group also alleged that Okowa failed to evenly locate developmental projects across the state, adding that he only focused on his area.

“Our state is heterogeneous and it is unfortunate that a government is only focusing on a small region to the detriment of others. The people of the state were hoodwinked into voting for the Peoples Democratic Party in 2019, but now the people have seen the light

“Despite all the huge resources coming to the state, there is little to show for it. The current government has impoverished the people of the state and cannot come back to ask them for votes. Their political dynasty is sinking and it is obvious that they no longer enjoy the support of the people.

“We are watching developments as they unfold in the state, particularly the swinging of the political pendulum as we drive the process of freeing the state from the hands of a selfish bunch who don’t believe in the betterment of the people. How do you in 2021 talk about 2023; are you God?” she said.

 

APC warns against governor’s interference 

Also, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in its contribution to the debate told the Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, to “perish the thought of determining who succeeds him in office at the expiration of his tenure in Government House, Asaba on May 29, 2023.”

The Delta State chapter of the APC in a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Sylvester Imonina, described the Governor’s statement as an “arrant arrogation of power” to himself, without any recourse to the will of the Delta masses.

The APC told the governor that the next gubernatorial poll in the state will be conducted in line with democratic tenets and that the choice of who succeeds him is not for him to make, pointing out that “only the people can make that decision.”

The leading opposition party in the state further warned the governor against any attempt by him and “a cabal” in the state to impose an individual on the electorate against the people’s mandate, condemning “the governor’s reported plan to abandon governance in Delta for partisan politicking in about two years to the general elections in the country.”

The statement said: “In a democracy, it is the responsibility of the electorates to choose who governs them, not a cabal or an individual who thinks or sees himself as an emperor. In other words, the voice of the people is the voice of God, not the personal interest of anyone who sees himself as a demi-god.

“It is on the above premise, the All Progressives Congress (APC) Delta State, condemns in no mean term, the arrant arrogation of power that belongs to Deltans by the State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa. Last weekend in Asaba, Governor. Okowa, who is supposed to be the Governor of all Deltans but presently referred to, by most Deltans as Governor of Owa-Alero, due to his clannish, nepotistic and propensity for “if my personal interest is not there, no one should have it”, carelessly said that in less than a month from now, he would be abandoning governance of the State for politics of who succeeds him by 2023!

“At the said ceremony, he arrogantly said that he would determine/install whoever will take over the saddle of governance in Delta State, come 2023. He threatened to teach those opposed to his political fiefdom a bitter lesson they will not forget, except they retrace their steps and/or join him in his political marauding of the wealth of our dear State.

“Delta APC believes that all power belongs to the Almighty Creator, and not mortals. The Governor Macbethic ambition cannot supersede what and who Deltans want.

“We therefore advise Mr. Governor to humble himself, and concentrate on the current responsibility bestowed on him, by delivering quality dividends of democracy to Deltans, rather than veering into the future that belongs to only God.”

The APC, also lamented that Delta under Okowa has been receiving the highest federal allocations for more than four years “besides other sources of revenues to the State without commensurate developmental strides to justify monies received.” The party said: “We dare to say that the desperation of the governor to abandon governance ‘for politics of who succeeds’ him less than one month from now is a pointer and manifestation of wanting to have someone who will cover his tracks after the 2023 governorship election!

“Without any dispute, the expectation of the good people of Delta State from the PDP-led government as at today is good leadership. Pitiably, it is lacking because of personal/family interest and desperation of a cabal and few political hallelujah boys in the corridor of powers in the State.

“One thing is sure; Deltans are wiser now and are ready to weed out all vestiges of political, social and economic liabilities impeding manifest and quality developments in Delta State since 1999 till date,” APC said.

As the various stakeholders advance their personal interests and accuse others of selfishness, concerned observers have called for restraint and understanding. Dr. Tony Avwode, a political analyst from the state, told The Nation that what Delta State needs today are selfless leaders. “The political atmosphere here is already charged though 2023 is still far away. This will tell us what will happen if nothing is done to ensure restraint, understanding and wisdom. As you can see, all the three senatorial zones have produced governors. There is no doubt that it took understanding and certain agreement to achieve that. So, if our leaders eschew selfishness, the issue of who will succeed Governor Okowa should not heat up the polity now,” he said, adding, “all we need is for the stakeholders to meet and agree on doing what is just and fair.”