*Omo-Agege Cannot Be Trusted, Exit From APC Inconsequential, Didn’t Come As Surprise,
DELTA State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, has stated that among candidates expected in next year’s presidential election, President Bola Tinubu stands out, because of his administration’s economic policies, saying recent reforms have improved revenue allocation to states, including Delta.
Oborevwori said: “The confidence we have is in the people. His reforms and programmes are working very well. When I commission projects and tell people we have money, it’s because of the reforms. If they are not working, we won’t get money.”
In addition, the governor said it would be “evil” for Deltans to vote against President Bola Tinubu in next year’s general elections, citing his personal and family ties to the state.
In a television interview on Tuesday, June 2, Oborevwori argued that Tinubu remains the only leading presidential contender with a direct affiliation to Delta State through his wife, Oluremi, who has maternal ancestral ties to the state, urging Deltans to see his candidacy as a “family affair.”
He added: “The man is an in-law here and it would be evil to vote against your in-law. It’s a family affair. In the South-South, the people in Delta are saying this is their own.”
Declaring Tiniubu’s re-election as his personal political project, Oborevwori said the President’s return to office would bring greater benefits to the state and Nigeria at large and would further ease the burden of governance on state governments.
He noted: “For the first time in the history of this state, we are not owing contractors. We don’t wait for allocation before paying contractors. Once jobs are certified, we pay. We mobilise contractors with 40 per cent and continue to fund projects as work progresses.”
Oborevwori enthused that the electoral prospects of Tinubu and the APC in the state was bright, saying the party is united and committed to delivering victory in the elections.
He dismissed reports of opposition parties making inroads into the state, insisting his administration’s performance and the numerous projects being executed would speak for the APC.
Oborevwori described former deputy senate president, Ovie Omo-Agege, as untrustworthy, accusing him of political betrayal and failure to consult party leaders during key political processes in the state.
The governor dismissed Omo-Agege as no political threat in the state, as his defeat in the last Delta Central APC senatorial primary election showed, alleging that he had betrayed several politicians, including James Ibori, Great Ogboru and O’tega Emerhor.
He said: “Omo-Agege, I will not say, I will not use the word pretentious, because we saw it coming before he left. All his people had left over three months ago. So, we all are aware.
“That was why he was not serious in the contest of the primaries because he never consulted anybody. He never consulted me; he never consulted any leaders.
“APC is a big party. As governor, I met with people to say, ‘look, I want to go back for my second tenure, please.’ But he never did that. I did that and that’s why you see that nobody even indicated interest to contest with me, because we believe in this zoning arrangement. In our place, in the state here, we believe in that because it’s the turn of the Central.
“He is not a threat because I’ve warned him before. The man who had the ticket in my party, Ede Dafinone, is a gentleman. They’re two reputations, Ovie Omo-Agege and Dafinone. They are not to compete. I’m just saying this.
“We did a free and fair primaries and he lost. It’s for him to embrace because the process was transparent, very transparent. And we all are aware he wants to leave. He’s not somebody that can be trusted.
“I don’t like talking about people, but I need to state it here. Omo-Agege came into politics in 2002. This state made him. The people that made him, he fought them.”
Oborevwori insisted that Omo-Agege’s political influence in the state has diminished and his exit from APC is inconsequential and would not impact on the party’s fortunes in the next elections, adding: “He is not a threat, because I have won it before.”
On former speaker of the state House of Assembly, Victor Ochei, the governor said he maintained a cordial relationship with him despite political differences.
According to him: “Ochei is my friend; he came and told me that he’s leaving.”
