By Onome Oghenetega
The governorship candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in Delta State, Dr. Goodnews Agbi, has come hard on the Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege, over alleged “unfulfilled promises” he made to the Isoko people.
Agbi said the people of Isoko ethnic nation will punish Senator Omo-Agege, who is the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), with their votes in the 2023 general elections.
He also said his major contender for the forthcoming governorship election is the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori.
The academia turned politician, however, boasted that he will defeat both Senator Omo-Agege and Oborevwori to succeed Governor Ifeanyi Okowa.
In an interview published by The Pointer Newspaper on Thursday, the NNPP governorship candidate accused Omo-Agege of forcing away “pillars of the party” and would torment him in the election.
According to Agbi, “I think I stand a very good chance to win. Among others, I have said it before and I will say it here again even though people might misconstrue it, the only person who will give us (NNPP) a serious challenge is the candidate of the PDP and it is clear why; they are in the government.
“Why I discountenance the chance of the APC candidate is because he has burnt so much goodwill. As I said earlier, he came to the party and drove away all those who were supposed to be pillars. Again, the APC candidate came to the Isoko nation to tell so many lies.”
Speaking on the reasons why Isoko people will not vote for Omo-Agege, he said “Once upon a time, he came to tell us that he will empower 20 people per ward N400, 000 each. Enmity was created, people waited till eternity and the money was never seen.
“Again, he came to say that he has appropriated N1billion for the Isoko nation to rehabilitate schools because they have been oppressed. We started to jubilate and in the end, we saw nothing.
“There are so many instances of his treachery that we cannot catalog here. So, we see him as a very deceitful candidate and the Isoko people have seen him for who he is.
“I will amplify that in my campaign to make them understand that the Isoko nation has always brought out the winning votes since 1999.
“I will ensure that the winning votes do not go to the APC candidate, so his chances are very slim. This was why I said that my major challenger is the PDP and that is a fact.”
Agbi also dismissed insinuation that the governorship seat in 2023 had been zoned to Delta Central Senatorial District, adding that what Deltans need is “good candidate” that will better their lives and develop the state.
“Those are politicians doing their calculations, not the people in the streets. The populace wants a good candidate. They look at our antecedents, our pedigree. They know that Mr. XYZ who has been doing ABC projects with his money will do better when he becomes the governor.
“But let me also add this; from 1999 till date, there has never been any election where a certain senatorial zone is excluded from participating. I do not want to bore you with history but even in 2015, Edevbie competed with the late Obuh. There were so many people from other senatorial districts who contested the 2015 general elections. So, it has been like that.
“I will not allow any ethnic group to use that (zoning principle) to blackmail me that it is their turn. We all should go to the field. We should sensitize the people and let the people decide.
“Even at that, the Urhobos are our kinsmen so they do not see us (Isoko) much differently from them. Therefore, that does not downgrade or reduce my chances. As I earlier said, it has always been an open field. It is just by chance”, Agbi stated.
