Delta 2023: State’s Chairman, Esiso, romance with guber aspirant, danger signal to PDP   

A political group in Delta State, Delta Ijaw 2023 Governorship Advocacy Group (DIGAG), has cautioned that the perceived romance of the State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olorogun Kingsley Esiso, with a particular governorship aspirant is a danger signal to the party.  The group accused the state chairman of partisanship in coordinating the affairs of the PDP in the build up to the party’s primaries for the 2023 elections.

Delta Ijaw 2023 Governorship Advocacy Group (DIGAG) in a statement by the Director General, AMB. Augustine Okporu (JP), noted that while Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has repeatedly assured Deltans that the PDP primaries will be conducted free and fair in the State, some power brokers who are closed to the corridor of power are doing the opposite. The group alleged that “even the Delta State Chapter of the PDP led by Olorogun Kingsley Esiso has seemingly taken a partisan position in the incoming party primaries.

“Some group of persons who considered themselves as Kingmakers in the state are openly working with the Delta State Chapter of the PDP as well as some closed associates of Governor Okowa to fund a particular aspirant with public funds and openly campaign for the said anointed aspirant in the governorship race.”

The group, therefore, insisted the members wish to puncture some of the unfriendly developments in the buildup to the 2023 governorship election in Delta State.

The Delta Ijaw 2023 Governorship Advocacy Group (DIGAG) in the statement by the Director General, AMB. Augustine Okporu (JP) declared: “We have been informed, though not verified, that the said anointed aspirant is being funded by some State Government agencies. If this news is true, then, we may invite the anti-graft agencies to enforce the law.”

The Delta Ijaw 2023 Governorship Advocacy Group (DIGAG) narrated that in 2021, Governor Okowa warned all his political appointees to refrain from political activities in order not to distract governance. The group added that the same led to the reshuffling of his cabinet. DIGAG said that the Governor repeatedly warned the appointees from actively participate in political activities.

Delta Ijaw 2023 Governorship Advocacy Group, however, lamented: “to our utter dismay and chagrin, many top appointees of the Governor are now publicly romancing with the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, who is touted as the anointed guber aspirant by political players in the State PDP.

“To worsen matters, other appointees who are supporting other guber aspirants in the PDP are not allowed to associate with their choice aspirants. Is this the free and fair primaries he has being promising us?”

AMB. Okporu (JP) further declared: “also, the State Chapter of the PDP, led by Olorogun Kingsley Esiso, is openly associating with the said anointed aspirant.”

The director general narrated: “sometime in March 2022, APC Delta State Chapter punctured the State Government’s rumoured endorsement of Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori as the anointed aspirant to the guber ticket. “The Publicity Secretary of the Delta State PDP, Dr. Ifeanyi M. Osuoza, while defending the State Government, qualified Sheriff as if he is already a candidate of the Party where the primaries haven’t been conducted yet.

“Again, while the various aspirants in the PDP are consulting delegates for their ambitions, some group of persons from Delta South Senatorial District amongst who are serving local governments council chairmen, PDP stalwarts, top government appointees in the State Government, etc., endorsed Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori as the anointed aspirant to the guber primary. While this endorsement spree is going on, nobody in the State, including Olorogun Kingsley Esiso, coughed.”

The D.G. protested that the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU) also did a similar thing like the Delta South PDP Stakeholders on Sunday, 17th of April 2022, to endorse Olorogun David Edevbie as the UPU’s consensus aspirant. He noted that the State Chairman, Barr. Kingsley Esiso did not wait for the noise to even die down before activating the LGA Party Chairmen from the Delta Central Senatorial District to counter the UPU’s endorsement.

“Which message Esiso is trying to pass to the PDP family in the State with this his biased stand? Well, we are not disturbed by the double stand of Kingsley Esiso and Gov. Okowa.

“We know that power belongs to God Almighty and thus, our faith is in the Lord. The Ijaw people are not also troubled by the endorsement sprees as the aspirants from Ijaw extraction are more than capable to fly the Party flag.

“All we ask from Kingsley Esiso and Gov. Okowa is to provide a level playing ground for all the aspirants in the State if Delta PDP must survive beyond 2023.

“We, therefore, urge the Ijaw people in Delta State not to be distracted by the endorsement sprees as well as the Machiavellian disposition of some supposed neutral arbiters in the guber race. God willing, an Ijaw man will rule Delta State Government come 2023,” AMB. Augustine Okporu (JP) declared.