Governor Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, a medical doctor turned politician, has been sworn in three times as the Executive Governor of Delta State. First was when he defeated over 12 others during the April 14 governorship election in 2007, including the gubernatorial candidate of the rival parties in the oil rich state – the Democratic Peoples Party, represented by Chief Great Ogboru; and the defunct Action Congress, Chief Peter Eloka Okocha. Ogboru dragged him to court over alleged ‘fraudulent election’ and Okocha said he was ‘unlawfully excluded’.
The matter lingered for years before Okocha’s case was thrown out for lack of merit. Ogboru soon secured the favour of the court when on November 9, 2010 the Court of Appeal in Benin, Edo State, ousted Uduaghan from office, having ruled that the election that produced him in 2007 was fraudulent and gave the Independent National Electoral Commission 90 days to conduct free, fair and credible election in the Big Heart state.
But lo and behold! It was Uduaghan again. The governor was sworn in the second time. He had not settled down for serious business of governance when the April 24 governorship election reared its head. He contested again, this time around, it has become a familiar terrain for him. He defeated his arch-rival, Ogboru, and the newest of them – Oharisis Ovie Omo-Agege of the Action Congress of Nigeria.
Floodgates of litigations soon trailed Uduaghan’s emergence. He was dragged again before the court. He has made it known that he would have delivered better on the mandate that produced him in 2007 if there were no litigations against his victory and if he had not inherited debts, running to billions of naira, and abandoned projects by the previous administration of Chief James Onanefe Ibori.
Has he actually impacted positively on the lives of the people that gave him their votes? Adewole Martins moved round his camp and those of his opponents to hear what they have to say about his six years-plus in the oil rich state’s Government House, Asaba.
Engr. Peter Azuka Ofili is the mouth-piece of the newly registered All Progressives Congress in Delta State:
“I will talk from the other divide, I mean the opposition party, which I stand for. I will not be here to play sycophant role. I will not whitewash the tomb like people who want to receive favour from the man (the Governor). And so, I begin by commending Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan for the positive turn around across the state in transport, education and health sectors. He did considerably well in these areas in the last two to three years even though some projects, which I will mention in due course, remained half-measured. He worked in those sectors and we see it, probably to cushion the effects of untold hardships been inflicted on poor masses by abject poverty on daily basis, but there is room for improvement. Mind you, he did 85 per cent of these things during his second term. He did practically nothing during his first tenure, forcing the people to query the whereabouts of the billions of naira that have accrued to the oil rich state from the federation account, and in protest, voted massively against his return bid during the rerun and 2011 governorship election. Even-though some of the projects he is being applauded are half-measured, he has all the same tried in the past two years. Some of his Commissioners have performed, the man in transport sector (Ben Igbakpa), the man in Health (Joseph Otumara), the man in Basic and Secondary Education (Prof. Patrick Muogohare), with his counterpart in Infrastructure (Orezi Esievo), have all helped and worked to boost the shoddy worldview about the Governor. The transport sector in the state is now being tailored to world standard and commuters are gradually patterning their lives maturely even as goods and services have assumed their proper place. But the problem the sector is facing has been worsened by the drainage system being constructed here and there. I am not saying the project is not a welcome development, the people are happy about it but where people should go, where people should stop is left out. At what point in time the buses will come and go, where it will discharge a passenger and not stopping at every PHCN pole. The roads are so narrow to accommodate the buses and other parking vehicles, and when you park on the road, you become a victim of the Ministry of Transport. At present now, people’s movement is not smooth such that people who are leaving in the suburb areas are afraid to come to the town because they don’t know where to park their vehicles. When people’s movement is stalled, it hindered development. Hence, this area requires further attention and improvement. The drainage system depicts a half-measured approach been adopted, nobody knows the pattern being adopted or the network of water inflow, where it is leading to, where it is coming from, and so, the picture is scattered. So, the government should refocus the project plan in the right direction, do this work properly, if the desired intention must be achieved and for the Governor’s administration not to be seen as being insincere, because either the government of the day likes it or not, the projects are generational and posterity will judge us all. In the area of job creation, the government of the day has not done excellently well. The future of the future leaders has not been properly secured. Apart from the fact that they should know where they are being led to, they have the right to a secure and bright future so that they can lead the way during their time but when they are not properly planned for, how will they lead the way? When the foundation is once destroyed, can they do anything meaning in the future? No wonder they slide into various devices like kidnapping, robbery, yahoo-yahoo, to forcefully secure a false future. So, the government of the day in Delta state should intensify its machinery to engage them, either in agriculture, vocational trainings and what have you. The turnaround the health sector is perfect, talk of the free maternal health care for pregnant women, free health care for children under the age of five and what have you, but the state’s hospitals are not enough to accommodate the number of pregnant women talk less of their children, so the government should declare a state of emergency on the hospitals, I mean, building more of them across the major cities of Asaba, Warri, Ughelli, Agbor, Sapele, to mention but few, where the population is tensed up. The schools he is building round the state, both for the mission and the state should be made affordable after all they were built for the masses. On the whole, the Governor is trying but there is room for greater improvement.”
Prince Jude H.E. Eze is the Chairman of KOWA Party in Delta State and Secretary of the state chapter of the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties: “His Excellency is worth commending for running an all-inclusive government. It shows that the winner does not take it all. His office on Inter-Parties Relations, is being occupied by one of us (opposition parties), Hon. Taju Sumonu Isichie, the governorship candidate of the Progressive Peoples Alliance. Olori Magage of the CAN is the Director General of the state’s Waste Management Board. Emmanuel Edafe Igbini, now the Director-General of the state’s Direct Labour Agency. But I refused to commend the appointment of Igbini. The Governor should look inward because we still have other reputable Engineers among us (opposition parties) who can fit into the shoe. We still have another of our colleague among his Commissioners, talking about the Hon. Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Ukubenji, who was the former Youth Coordinator of ACN in the state. On the whole, Governor Uduaghan’s all-inclusive government has been wonderful, only that he failed to recognize us in the recent appointment of 130 persons into 14 boards in the state. The Governor has been magnanimous. There is no perfect human being on earth. There are areas where the Governor has done excellently well and there are areas where he needs to double up. For instance now, he has done creditably well in the area of infrastructural development by building visible mega schools across the state and massively renovated hundreds of the dilapidated ones. He has by this feat uplifted the standard of education in the state and thereby impacted positively on the lives of youths who are the future of the state. By building on the future of the youths via education, his human-capital development has been enhanced, lauded and upheld. Are we to talk of the world class airport project he embarked upon, it takes a Governor with a big heart to envision, commence and complete such huge project, the dualization of federal road across Asaba, Ughelli, Warri, the world-class and self-imposing new Government House project that has now been put to use is there for all to see, the massive opening up and construction and reconstruction of roads across the state. His human-capital development agenda took its proper shape with the scholarship awards he designed for students, such that First Class degree holders of the state origin now have the scholarship to further their education up to Doctorate level. Check round, it is only the federal government and few states that could dare it. It is no longer news that the Governor has received awards locally and internationally through his poverty alleviation programme routed through the Micro-Credit Scheme of his administration. Night life has picked up in major cities across the state because he lighted up cities with streetlights. More jobs have created with the commencement of flight at the airport. Be that as it may, the Governor needs to improve on all these. He should not be satisfied because there are still more to do in the area of road maintenance, repair and construction. The link roads within Asaba metropolis which he has just declared a state of emergency upon is long overdue. Before now, they are nothing to write home about. Asaba is the state capital and it should be given its pride of place because any stranger coming into the state will rate other cities across the state with what is on ground in the state capital. The only functioning road in Asaba before now was the popular Summit road to Inter-Bau Roundabout. Nnebisi road ended up worse as soon as it gets to Osadebe axis, Okpanam road is bad, pot-holes here and there, until it becomes a narrow way to Okpanam town by the Legislative Quarters, where the concentration of civil servants is now high. The Anwai road that leads to Government House is worse anytime it rains as vehicles that are not of government standard submerged whenever it rains cat and dog. In the area of peace and security, the Governor did his best. Last time when the Inspector-General of Police visited the state, the Governor donated 40 Hilux vans and other communication gargets to the police to keep the agenda abreast. It was not the first or second time. The gesture was a testimony that the Governor is a man of peace. All said and done, the Governor is doing his best. He meant well for the state only that some sycophants would not let him exhibit his best. We are praying for him.
Barrister (Mrs.) Orezi Esievo is the Governor’s Commissioner in-charge of Directorate of Infrastructure: “I make bold to say that my boss has not only delivered on the mandate that produced him in 2007, after the rerun election and 2011 governorship election. Testimonies of that abound across the state. Let me quickly give a panoramic view of the strides in education and few other sectors. The state’s education sector has witnessed unprecedented improvement and thereby promoting the human-capital development of the Governor’s agenda. The massive investment in new school buildings and the refurbishment of old structures to ensure the return of discipline and moral rearmament has made the state, in its collaborative effort with private sector, to witness robust activities, healthy competition and academic excellence. The projects are in consonance with the national policy on infrastructure development of all sectors of the economy. Immediately Governor Uduaghan assumed office in 2007, he puts an efficient quality assurance mechanism in place to ensure quality but improve and deliver on the infrastructure he inherited from the administration of Chief James Onanefe Ibori (his predecessors). He swiftly instituted deliberate policy to attract all children of school age to school through the provision of not only tuition free but child-friendly school environment, by declaring a state of emergency on infrastructural decadence, from pre-primary to secondary levels of education, and knowing fully-well that quality educational service delivery is a very gigantic venture and the most important legacy that they can bequeath unto its youths is sound education, he effected increase pressure on the available infrastructure particularly classrooms and hostel accommodation. In 2009 alone, a total number of 487 classroom blocks were constructed and renovated. In 2010, a total number of 657 classroom blocks were also constructed and renovated while in 2011, a total number of 137 new classroom blocks were awarded for construction and 67 classroom blocks were given out for rehabilitation / renovation in the same year and the projects are already above 70.5% completed, while the remaining ones are at the various stages of completion. Also in 2012, a total of 87 projects have been awarded and tenders for various types of projects are being collated. Construction of six classroom blocks each in 33 schools, using the Eternit Modular Panel and renovation of classroom blocks in 11 schools in selected riverine communities affected by the Niger-Delta crises. In addition to this, a total of 55 primary and secondary schools of international standard, were built by this Directorate to fast-tract infrastructural development in the state. Besides that, through the state Universal Basic Education Board, 198 classroom blocks were initiated, out of which 173 have been completed, while 25 are on-going. Equally, 76 classroom blocks were earmarked for renovation and out of this number; over 60 have been completed while about 14 are on-going. In addition, the board also constructed 540 infant furniture (ECCDE) 3,110 teachers’ table and chairs and 36,082 pupil / students dual desks. These items were distributed across the three senatorial districts in the state. This was in addition to 8,302 students’ furniture and 1,066 teachers’ tables and chairs supplied to various schools in the state in 2011 and provision of 4,000 desks for students and pupils and 1,064 teachers’ tables and chairs for riverine schools were also undertaken. During the period under review, construction of examination halls and perimeter fencing, students’ toilets and boreholes in some secondary schools in the state were undertaken. While all these were done, teachers / staff quarters were not left out in some selected riverine and upland schools in the state. all these were aside the Warri Industrial Business Park and the Koko Export Free Zone (KFTZ), being constructed by the Governor to serve as another laudable means of diversifying the state’s economy. What about the gas-based industrial park – a major component of President Goodluck Jonathan’s Gas Revolution Agenda, which has a robust private sector interest? There is also a solid private sector investment in agriculture in Delta’s collaboration with Obasanjo Farms / OFN project, coupled with the boost the on-going construction of the Delta Leisure Park at Oleri, near Warri and the Wild-Life Park (the Zoo), at Ogwashi-Uku, Aniocha South Local Government Area of the state. Most of the waterfront areas at Warri, Koko, Burutu and Oghara, have virtually been taken up by private investors and are at various stages of establishing their industries, especially oil and gas-based industries, and beaches.
Hon. Funkekeme Solomon is the Governor’s Commissioner for Works: “Let me just dwell on the area under my purview may be that will convince you that His Excellency, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan meant well for Delta state and has worked assiduously for its development. When he assumed office in 2007, he inherited over 418 road projects, estimated at N133 billion. The projects, comprised 1,372 kilometer length of roads and 744 kilometer length of drains. A total of 10 contracts were immediately repudiated for non-performance even as 24 others are now at various stages of repudiation. Apart from the N43.2 billion spent on 60 per cent of the inherited projects, N240.8 billion have been expended on 367 other road projects since 2007. The Governor refused to be dragged into unnecessary negative publicity. He empowered the state’s Ministry of Justice to recover all expended monies. Though, we are in a democratic environment, I can assure you that any further issue of misdemeanor by any contractor in such category is being dealt with decisively by the Governor. Out of the 1,372 kilometer length of roads he inherited, 549 kilometer length of roads and 170 kilometre drainage channels, have now been completed. Over 1,006 kilometer length of roads that the Governor awarded in 2007, have been completed, bringing all-weather roads projects awarded across the state to 3,236 kilometer. In the current fiscal year, over 100 projects, inclusive of new ones, abandoned and repudiated, have been processed for approval and are at various stages of procurement. The dualization of 6.2 kilometer Refinery Road (Federal road) with spur along the NNPC Housing Estate road to Ekpan Roundabout, Effurun, has cost the state over N4.3 billion, Governor’s hope is that when completed, it would link the intersection in Ekpan town, improve traffic flow and also link the Petroleum Training Institute/Ekpan Road, Effurun / Sapele road to the Nigeria Port Authority dual carriageways. The award of 8.35 kilometer Ajagbodudu – Ogharefe road at the cost of N2.4 billion to Messrs Levant Construction Limited with a spur to the state’s Independent Power Plant project site at Oghara was to connect Oghara to Koko, with its Seaport and proposed Koko Free Trade Zone. This is just to mention but few my brother.”
Comrade Emeka Nkwoala (JP) is the state Chairman of the Labour Party in Delta State: “A critical evaluation of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s three point agenda of peace and security, human-capital and infrastructural development show clearly that the Governor is on duty. I am speaking frankly and constructively as a politician and one of the labour leaders in the state. Development can be viewed in terms of deepening the democratic culture, providing enabling environment for peace and security, which translate into human-capital and infrastructural development. No doubt, the democratic culture has been deepened in Delta state in the past six years as some remarkable dividends of democracy are visible here and there across the state. There are debates, there is also an appreciable amount of free media and people are expressing their minds. At times, it may be very negative. Finding answers to people´s questions or complaints deepens the democratic structure. The Governor has implemented the minimum wage and salaries are paid before the end of each month. The Governor’s administration has improved the health sector tremendously; his free health care package is now a sing-song across the country, given free treatment to ages 0-5 and pregnant mothers. Our schools are wearing new look. The shanties defacing the environment are gradually given ways to natural and clean environment. The ban of Okada in major cities is worthy of note, that has led to improved well-being, less accidents on our roads and snatching of bags, bangles, what have you, have become things of the past in our major cities. These are courageous decisions of the Governor and we commend him. When he bans, he replaces. We have seen states where bans are pronounced but nothing is done to cushion the effects. However, all these efforts are not sustainable, if the industries in the state remains in comatose. Sustainable development is that which is anchored on job creation through massive industrialization and employment. The Asaba Textile Mill, if resuscitated is capable of creating 2,000 direct jobs, and well over 5,000 indirect jobs. ‘Delta Beyond Oil’ readily comes to mind. We must continue to engage our leaders in this direction until our state becomes an ideal state among the commity of states in Nigeria. The struggle certainly must continue until victory is won. The roads are gradually been constructed and reconstructed but the project must be extended to neighboring towns and villages to Asaba. Okpanam now harbours the influx of people to Asaba, attention must therefore be given to roads leading to such places. These are the ways the people would appreciate the dividends, not only when you share money for them. The expansion of the Inter-Bau Roundabout and proposed fly-over across it, is a welcome development. It is only a visionary leader with good lieutenants that can conceive and execute such laudable projects. I praise him. Above all, the Governor has done well but beyond the sky is still the limit.”