Secret Reporters No place to hide
… As Okowa vows to clear all Urhobo votes
Fejiro Oliver
These are really the best of times between Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan who has not only adopted Senator Ifeanyi Okowa as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate but showed him all the support towards ensuring that the PDP captures the State like never before.
This was shown again when the campaign train left Asaba at exactly 8:47 am (Nigerian time) to Oshimili North Local Government where the Governor was present. Uduaghan humbly apologized to the King, HRM, Obi (Dr) David Azuka whose palace was the first point of call for coming late. Going down memory lane, he reminded the audience that “There is a tradition in this Delta North where you begin your campaign and you win, and Oshimili North is that place. We are starting form here again and we will win”
He pleaded with the Obi to sensitize his people on the need to get their permanent voters card, as there are over seven hundred thousand cards with the electoral body, owned by Deltans yet to be collected. He officially presented Okowa to the traditional stool as the candidate they have picked from the party to fly the flag.
Senator Ifeanyi Okowa on his own pleaded with the traditional rulers to play politics, not by being partisan but educating their subjects on the need to get their permanent voters card (PVC). The Chairman of Oshimili Traditional Council of Chiefs stated that Oshimil has been a PDP region and they will not only mobilize the people to collect their cards but vote for Okowa. “We will go to the field ourselves. Our people will come enmass and vote PDP”, he stated.
At the proper venue of the campaign was a spectacle of mammoth crowd to behold. Governor Uduaghan who mounted the podium to campaign for Okowa danced jubilantly and turned round in joy as the music ‘I can see everything turning around’ blared from the speakers.
Speaking, Uduaghan stated that “by 12 pm on May 29th, I will be ex and another governor in Okowa will step in”, he told the teeming crowd. He drew emphasis on Okowa having a good wife in Lady Dame Edith who is a Permanent Secretary not because she is Okowa’s wife but based on merit. He revealed that he did intelligence survey on Lady Judith and realized that “Even as the wife of a big man, she was the first to get to school. Okowa will not have rest unless he empowers you because the wife will disturb him to do so ”
The governor who charged the place with his speech declared no Valentine day for Deltans on February 14th as they have to come out in the field to vote for the PDP. Dancing ecstatically as he was asked to speak to the crowd, the righteous man went spiritual singing ‘there is something that makes me run into your presence, my helper’. Campaigning, he stated that anything that affects the Urhobos, Ijaws, Iteskiri, Isokos and the Aniomas affects the PDP; hence the people should vote them in, in all categories.
In a manner that was surprising to all those who attended, David Edevbie who came second during the campaign was also present. He was brought on the podium by Okowa who referred to him as a brother. The governorship hopeful told the audience of Oshimili North, that youths will be specially looked into while the micro credit scheme initiated by Uduaghan will be improved on to benefit not only the women but the men.
The train moved to Aniocha North, where one of the former aspirants Prof. Sylvester Monye bared the truth. “As a former guber aspirant, I can tell you that Delta is lucky to have Sen. Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa. I said it that anybody who beats me, I will support him. Okowa defeated us fair and square and I will work for him, he told the jubilant crowd.
Okowa revealed that the choice of his running mate, Barr. Kingsley Otuaro was decided by God as he prayed for a young man to work with and God gave him Otuaro. He called on the people not to vote for his opponents who cannot be trusted with government since they have not being stable with a political party every election year. He agreed that they have experience but it is only in business where their experience is to cheat people to make gains, whereas he has experienced in every sector of government beginning from Councillor to the current level of a Senator. He noted that as a first timer in the Senate, he has sponsored two bills which have been passed into law, a feat never achieved in the Red Chambers before.
He affirmed that the “Urhobos are my brothers and from what I saw when I went to campaign there, all Urhobos will vote for me”. As he spoke, he told the security officials to allow the crowd to come near him as he will not govern them from afar but near.
And again, the son of man closed his campaign with one of his favorite song “All other ground is sinking sand’ by 3.40 pm
