By Francis Sadhere, Warri
Member representing Warri North Constituency in the Delta State House of Assembly and Delta South Senatorial aspirant, Hon Michael Diden on Monday said he is not going into the Delta South Senatorial race to act as a spoiler.
Hon Diden, who spoke to journalist in Koko, Warri North Council area of the State during a press conference, officially declared his intention to run for the Delta South Senatorial race.
He said he is going to the Senate to bring development to his people, because he is very qualified to run for the seat, adding that as a peace maker, he was going to ensure that all the three ethnic groups in Delta South Senatorial district will be well represented.
On rumour going round that he was being sponsored by Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, the Delta State Governor, Hon Diden debunked the rumor saying that he is not sponsored by anybody whatsoever, adding that he has the capacity to run for Delta South Senatorial seat by himself
He said, “If I decided that my role will be that of a spoiler, then I should know that one day somebody will come and play the role of a spoiler in my life too. I am not here to sabotage the effort of anybody. I am here to run my own election. I have decided that even if President Muhammadu Buhari joined this race, I am still going to run this race to the end. The governor is not sponsoring me. I have told the governor and the former governor that I want to run for the senate.
“If at this age somebody is sponsoring me and after awhile he will then ask me to step down, then that is not giving me a good name. But if that is the case, it then means I don’t believe in growth. I believe in growth; I have grown from Local government Chairman to Delta State House of Assembly and now from House of Assembly to the Senate and from Senate, maybe to the presidency.”
Speaking on his chances of winning the election, Hon Diden who is running under the platform of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, said, “As far as I am concerned the PDP flag is already in my hands.”
Hon Diden said his primary purpose of going to the Senate is to ensure that all the three ports, Warri, Koko and Sapele ports become operational, adding that if given the opportunity he will ensure that all the three ports are dredged to allow bigger vessels come in.
Asked if he is going to defect to another party if he did not get the PDP flag, Hon Diden said it had never being his trademark to defect, noting that he is into the race to win.
He said that he has supported the two powerful strong contenders for the senatorial race, incumbent Senator James Manager and the former Delta State Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan, for so many years, it was only logical that the two of them should support him this time around.
On the Free Export Processing Zone (EPZ) that was taken to Ogidigben, Hon Diden said he was the one that the project to Sapele but was hijacked by politicians and taken to Ogidigben instead.
On the Ijaw/Itsekiri crisis that has troubled the two ethnic groups in the past, Hon Diden said he played a critical role in the resolution of the crisis, appealing to the two ethnic groups to continue to sustain the existing orange peace.
He said, “I have played a major role in the Itsekiri and Ijaw crisis. I made sure that there was peace between the two ethnic groups. When the crisis came to a point we told ourselves that we cannot continue to fight ourselves. I told my people that no position is worth the life any man. If I get to the Senate, which I ask sure I will, I will make sure that I take care of all the ethnic groups in the senatorial district.”
Hon Diden, a former chairman of Warri North Council area said that he does not have any option other than getting the Senate seat, stressing that, “I do not have option B in playing this politics because I am not running to fail.
Hon Diden was a Senior Special Assistant on Security Matters from where he was made the Special Adviser to former Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan. He was later made the Commissioner Representing the Itsekiri nation in the Delta State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (DESOPADEC) in 2011.
