2027: Delta Youths Protest Okowa’s Senate Ambition, Warn EFCC

Leaders from the nine local government areas that make up Delta North Senatorial District, alongside hundreds of youths under the aegis of the Coalition of Delta North Youths, on Thursday rejected the ambition of immediate past Governor Ifeanyi Okowa to run for the Senate.

The group, in Agbor, appealed to President Bola Tinubu, as the leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), not to allow the party’s ticket to be given to the former governor.

The Coalition Leader, Barr. Benjamin Ofor Atagana, called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to act on the petition concerning the alleged misappropriation of N13 trillion during Okowa’s tenure. He warned that the petition should not be discarded simply because the former governor defected to the APC.

Speaking alongside the Vice President of the Movement for the Emancipation of Anioma Nation, Aghulor Okoh; the Coordinator of One Voice for Anioma Nation, Oskar Chukwuwike; and Kingsley Kainebi, the leaders from the nine local government areas that make up Delta North urged the former governor to clear himself of corruption allegations before seeking political office.

They also urged members of the Traditional Rulers’ Council to steer clear of politics and instead focus on the interests of their subjects and the preservation of cultural heritage. They vowed to mobilize across Delta North to resist his ambition.

“Dr. Okowa should face the N13 trillion petition with the EFCC. Until he has cleared himself of this allegation, he should not be allowed to contest any election in Nigeria.

“The 2027 election will amount to a charade and oligarchy, not democracy, if a man who is yet to answer allegations of N13 trillion participates. We reject Okowa and his ambition. We did not beg him to return to the Senate. It is driven by his selfish interests and those he handpicked into office.”

“Opposition parties should resist the temptation to give their party tickets to Okowa. We will genuinely support any candidate who has a credible record in public service. This is not a campaign of calumny but a genuine call against a father and daughter occupying elective positions at the expense of others in the senatorial district,” he said.