By Idama Afure
It all started in December 2024 when Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, Deputy President of the Senate in the 9th assembly, superintended an elaborate ceremony to receive Rt. Hon. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, formally into the All Progressives Congress (APC) at Oghara, Ethiope East Local government area.
That critical permutations changing political masterstroke at that Delta Central venue marked the flag off of an unprecedented APC interactive stakeholders meetings across all 25 local government areas in Delta State.
“What is ahead of us going into 2027 is to build a united party that is strong enough to uproot PDP and its years of unproductive governance in Delta and with the recent defection of our real lioness of the Niger Delta, Rt. Hon. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, member representing Ethiope East/Ethiope West Constituency, and Chairman, House Committee on NDDC and some top PDP leaders. APC is well positioned to sweep Ethiope Federal constituency and Delta in 2027,” Senator Ovie Omo-Agege said at that epic gathering.
As the gubernatorial flag bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 election, it was an unusual venture by a candidate that led the party to record its best ever performance in Delta State. The people were used to not seeing any flag bearer from the losing parties until another electoral cycle. There was ample demonstration of that since 2007.
Since the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) coasted to the Government House, Asaba in 1999, it has remained the dominant party in Delta State. So gripping was the party’s hold in the state that the saying “Delta is PDP and PDP is Delta” became a popular sobriquet that determined the fate of aspiring and bourgeoning politicians.
If you want to win an election in Delta State, you must go through the party. In fact, winning PDP primary became the real election that guaranteed victory.
Unfortunately, it got into the head of PDP’s leadership and the elected leaders.
The quest for leadership was transformed into securing the endorsement of party leaders, no longer driven by ideas that would chart a viable course for improving the lot of the people. That effectively made PDP lose whatever claim of being a party for the people it may have had.
The yearning by the people for change was overwhelming, albeit with little faith in the ability of the people who positioned themselves as the alternative. The hopelessness was not unfounded. After Chief James Ibori left office in 2007 and the electoral process compromised, it became practically impossible for any other party to gain a foothold in the state.
For the initial set of governorship aspirants that sought to dislodge PDP, it was a venture built on quicksand devoid of grassroots approach, the aspirants relied entirely on a personality cult. But Delta is wired differently. It is not a state where a cult-like following was a viable strategy.
All that changed in 2023 when as a sitting Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Omo-Agege picked up the gauntlet. Having clinched the governorship ticket of the APC, he rebuilt, rejigged and re-established the party as a potent force in the state.
At the end of the elections, he engineered the victory in two out of the three Senatorial seats, won one of the House of Representative seats, and got seven members into the state House of Assembly.
In the governorship contest, Omo-Agege himself came a very close and creditable second.
The performance was unprecedented. APC has since taken over the three senate seats with the resignation of the only PDP senator for APC. It was an outcome that established APC as a credible alternative political force with the undoubted capacity to dislodge the PDP.
Unlike those that walked the path earlier, Omo-Agege is not resting on his oars. Having seen the power in grassroots mobilization and the impact on the outcome of elections, he is digging in to make the path to 2027 smooth.
In January 2025, the former Senate Deputy President’s tour of all the local government areas shifted to Delta North Senatorial zone. The mammoth crowd that turned out to welcome him in the various Anioma councils was a recurring feature of the entire tour.
From Ukwuani to Ndokwa West, Ika South, and Ika North East, Senator Omo-Agege was met with overwhelming acceptance. His interactive meetings with APC elders, leaders, and stakeholders have reinforced a collective resolve to strengthen the party and work towards a better Delta State. Party unity and consolidation of gains of the previous election became the common theme of his message across the local government areas.
In Kwale, the Senator engaged with key party figures, all of whom unanimously agreed to consolidate their gains and continue as a united and indivisible party in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The message was clear: Delta cannot continue to earn so much yet remain in ruins.
He similarly conferred with leaders of the party in the six other councils in Ika, Aniocha and Oshimili. Omo-Agege stated that unlike some leaders of the party who after an election would not be seen again until another elections cycle, he has come to interact with them on the way forward, by looking at areas where the party fared poorly in the last election and how to improve on such lapses to ensure a better outcome in 2027.
While commending the feat recorded by the party in the last election, Omo-Agege said: “After an election, we needed to seat down and evaluate our performance, analyse where we didn’t do well and how to prevent such shortcomings in future elections.”
After the tortuous roads he waded through to Bomadi, Patani and Burutu in the third leg of the tour to Delta south senatorial zone, the Delta APC leader lamented the unmitigated neglect of the area.
He expressed shock over the deplorable state of roads describing his journey from Warri to Burutu as frustratingly slow due to the horrendous condition of the roads, lamenting that after 25 years of PDP rule, there was little or no progress in the areas, leaving the people in hardship despite their wealth of natural resources and contributions to Delta State’s treasury.
“For decades, Burutu and Bomadi have been major economic contributors to Delta State’s wealth. Yet, there is little to show for it in terms of development,” Omo-Agege said.
He pointed out that while the PDP controlled Delta South’s Senate seat, the House of Representatives seat, and the two-state assembly seats for 24 years, successive governments have continuously failed to invest in the areas.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting in Koko, Warri North, Omo-Agege reflected on the APC’s narrow loss in the 2023 governorship election, vowing to unseat the ruling PDP in 2027.
“We came so close in 2023, but fell short by whiskers. However, we’ve learned from our mistakes and are now more determined than ever to win Delta State for the APC”, he emphasized.
On the way forward , the Obarisi of Urhoboland reaffirmed his commitment to more inclusive leadership in the party, assuring party leaders and members in Delta State that the APC will adopt a more participatory approach to decision-making, giving every stakeholder a voice. “I don’t claim to have a monopoly on good ideas. It’s through conversations like these that we can come up with better solutions to move our party and the state forward,” he said.
Expressing optimism with fortunes of APC, Omo-Agege said the success of President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, restructuring of the polity as well as widespread discontent with Governor Sheriff Oborevwori administration’s failures have paved the way for the PDP to be booted out of Delta State in 2027.
Although as the leader of APC in Delta he concentrated on boosting the party’s appeal at the grassroots and addressing the complaints of the various interest groups, stakeholders at all the councils were unanimous that Omo-Agege was statesman-like in his interactions with stakeholders, they said he is the pivot to success in 2027.
Echoing the stand of stakeholders across the 25 councils, an APC chieftain in Delta State and a prominent prince of Warri Kingdom, Prince Yemi Emiko, declared that Senator Ovie Omo-Agege has rightfully earned the leadership of the APC in Delta State.
“All politics is local. If you want to lead, you must deliver your ward and local government. Omo-Agege has earned the leadership of Delta APC through hard work and grassroots mobilization—not by making empty claims on social media”, Emiko noted.
He said political leadership must be built from the grassroots and urged those aspiring for leadership to return to their units and wards, mobilize support, and show results. The APC chieftain stated that if the party remains solidly behind him, it will sweep PDP out of Delta in 2027.
