One must first be aware of the rudiments of party politics before engaging oneself in it, in Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru’s case, the revise is the case. This has led to making his usual and constant political calculations since he ventured into politics in 2003.
It is a fact that during the merger and preparation to 2015 election, Ogboru was approached to join forces with the All Progressives Congress (APC) so as to form a formidable opposition to defeat the PDP in Delta State, a request he bluntly rejected stating that he would not join forces with northern elements to remove a southerner, Goodluck Jonathan as president of Nigeria. He went further to tag the APC, a boko haram party being headed by Fulani and Islamic fundamentalists with Buhari as the leader of the plan to Islamize Nigeria and turn Nigeria to a Sharia nation.
Ogboru and his close allies took it upon themselves to campaign vigorously against the APC in the build up to the 2015 general elections as he was working to enthrone the PDP presidential candidate, ex president Goodluck Jonathan, who according to him promised to install him as the governor of Delta state when it was obvious that Jonathan was supporting his PDP candidate, Sen. Ifeanyi Okowa.
Ogboru’s intention for that negotiation with the ex president was not for the interest of the Urhobo nation of which he is trying so hard to make people believe that he is fronting for, neither was it the interest of Delta State in general but for his personal interest of securing contracts of fish importation and other contracts from the ex president.
Today Goodluck Jonathan has been retired home by the party (APC) tagged as boko-haram party by Ogboru and his allies as well as his supporters.
That alone could not give lessons to Ogboru “that you don’t fight a man operating on the realm of grace”. He has constantly engaged his media hatchet men to vigorously exploit all means possible to swindle gullible minds and sponsoring of campaign of calumny against Olorogun Otega Emerhor, whom he appealed to, to help him into the APC.
Yes, Ogboru begged Olorogun Otega to help him into the APC, Olorogun Emerhor being a smart politician with a broad and lovely heart and for the love of brotherly kindness forgave the previous acts of his younger brother and took him in company of the state chairman of the party to the national secretariat where he made his formal and official declaration and defection into the APC.
There he was frankly instructed by the National Chairman of the party, to work with Emerhor being the leader of the party in the state.
This cannot be farfetched from the recent meeting of leaders that were invited to meet with the president at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, a couple of weeks ago, where Olorogun Otega was the only leader that represented Delta state in that meeting.
From my view, Emerhor’s aim of wholeheartedly welcoming Ogboru, Ochei, Cairo Ojougbo and other notable forces into the party is to form a formidable and fierce front to wrestle power from the ruling PDP in the state, because the PDP has brought acute poverty and mass underdevelopment despite huge allocations accruing to the state from the federal government and internally generated revenue all these years.
Who Then Do Ogboru Intend To Deceive With His Urhobo Interest.?
Emerhor who worked and spearheaded the activities of APC from its merger (after the death of Sen. Pius Ewherido) to the congress, through the 2015 elections till today, is now being tagged as working against the APC and being an anti Urhobo by Ogboru and his allies.
It is on record that Emerhor has influenced vital appointments to the state from the federal government. He has displayed what true leadership is all about.
The Urhobo nation has benefited greatly from these recent appointments as they have never benefited such thus far according to records and they must be grateful and thankful to their illustrious son Olorogun Otega Emerhor who is behind all these federal appointments than join some Urhobo rascals to demean the personality and reputation of Emerhor. Truly, Emerhor deserves respect and commendations from the Urhobos.
Emerhor could have also negotiated for personal contracts and maybe a juicy federal appointment during the 2015 elections from ex president Jonathan as was the case with Ogboru who has been bent on trading with the urhobo interest, but Emerhor never did that but remained resolute and dedicated in the vision to enthrone President Muhammadu Buhari. That singular action of his, is the fruit the Urhobo nation and Delta state in general are benefiting from today.
I wish to remind Ogboru of the numerous souls that have been lost, some handicapped and others made poor, jobless and left suffering and wandering in the streets like lost sheep’s without Shepherd due to his selfish agenda of being a governor at all cost to the detriment of lives and properties all these years. The stories can be gotten from the archives and even in the streets of Delta state.
Ogboru has caused more havoc, hatred and disunity among the Urhobo nation and other ethnic nationality for the sake of his personal ambition. His apology to the Urhobo nation should be urgently demanded as he has endangered more lives during his election, and thereafter disappearance into thin air without caring for the people labour for him only to resurface during another electioneering year.
Ogboru is encouraged to learn some attributes of Resilience, kindness, good political calculations and strategies and above all humility, from Olorogun Emerhor as the above listed attributes has kept Emerhor in soaring higher in all ramification.
Olorogun Otega Emerhor today, is celebrated around the world because of his numerous achievements in business.
Build Up T 2019 Elections
In his usual over ambitious manner of seeking to be governor of Delta state, Ogboru has instructed his media hatchet men to spew campaign of calumny against Emerhor and other leaders who he feels are not supporting his ambition.
It is worthy of note that the leader of the party Olorogun Otega Emerhor has never instructed any aspirant from Delta central or Delta south not to contest the forthcoming APC gubernatorial primaries despite the agitation by party members for Delta North to produce the next guber candidate of the APC. It has been stated times without numbers that it is a free for all contest and since Ogboru intends to contest, he should engage himself in what other aspirants are doing at the moment, which is consultation of party leaders and stakeholders.
Having highlighted the above, it becomes pertinent to elucidate and educate Ogboru and his overzealous supporters that:
1. Ogboru should stop junketing around offices in Abuja and Lagos at a time other governorship aspirants are busy at the grass roots, making consultations as regards their ambition.
2. Ogboru should focus on how to go into the party primaries which comes up soonest and on how to get victory rather than engaging himself in unnecessary blackmail and campaign of calumny against other party leaders especially our highly respected leader Olorogun Otega Emerhor.
3. Should Ogboru not know the rudiments of playing the cards in securing party tickets, since he has never been involved in one, he should seek those with the experience to guide him.
4. Ogboru should not be scared of the calibres of aspirants from Delta North as the gubernatorial primaries will be free, fair and credible as delegates will decide who to fly the party flag.
5. The current onslaught on Olorogun Otega Emerhor by Ogboru and his supporters will only reduce the chances of him winning the ticket as majority of party faithfuls sympathizes with the superlative influence, support and leadership of Olorogun Otega Emerhor.
6. Urhobo interest will not guarantee Delta APC the government house but a pan Delta interest is sure in getting the desired goal.
7. That the party is aware of their recent plot after the initial one to remove party officials failed, and their shift to constantly attacking Emerhor.
Finally, Ogboru should learn the rudiments of politics so as to help guide against making his usual and constant political miscalculations.
Onoriode Ogbabor, writes in from Delta state.
