Tribunal: Itihwe Appeals to Ogboru, Emerhor to Accept Verdict, Says Okowa Victory is for Deltans

By Tejiri Ebikeme/Francis Sadhere

Member representing Ughelli South, Udu, Uvwie and Urhobo nation in Warri South in the board of Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), Chief Amos Itihwe has appealed to the governorship candidates of the Labour Party (LP), Chief Great Ogboru and the All Progressives Congress (APC), Olorogun Otega Emerhor to accept the verdict of the electoral Tribunal and stop further litigation so as to allow Governor Ifeanyi Okowa to concentrate on developing the state.

Chief Itihwe said that the victory of Governor Okowa at the tribunal is a victory for the whole of Delta State, calling on Deltans, especially Urhobos, to rally round Governor Okowa in his quest to bringing prosperity to all Deltans.

The DESOPADEC board member who made this appeal while speaking to our correspondent in an interview at his residence in Ughell North, also called on Urhobo sons and daughters to prevail on the duo of Ogboru and Emerhor to sheath their sword and allow the government of the day concentrate on governance.

He said: “I want to appeal to my Urhobo brothers to prevail on our brothers in the opposition to sheath their sword because the victory of Okowa at the tribunal is the victory for all Deltans. Ogboru and Emerho should avoid further litigations against this government so that the government will have enough time to develop the state. This government should not be given any reason not to develop the state.”

Itihwe, who was the pioneer Education Secretary in Ughell South Local Government area, reassured the Urhobo nation that he will use his position to bring development to the people, stressing the new DESOPADEC board is poised to ensuring that projects are evenly distributed across all the oil bearing communities in the state.

He called on the people of his constituency to be patient with the newly constituted board, reminding them that the present economic situation in the country will not allow them to meet their expectations fully.

“As a member of DESOPADEC board, I know that the expectations of the people are very high, especially the oil producing communities where the wealth of this country is being derived. They expected a lot from us. But considering the dwindling oil prices in the international market, things have been extremely difficult for everybody. But however, it is our resolved to ensure that the little that comes to the board will be adequately managed to make sure that all the oil bearing communities are impacted,” Chief Itivwi said.

Chief Itihwe, who was a former chairman of PDP in Ughelli South, assured Deltans that it is no longer going to be business as usual in the new board of DESOPADEC as the board has zero tolerance for uncompleted projects.

He revealed that the new board is going to verify all projects embarked upon by the last administration, adding that they will have to verify the level of completion before they could pay any contractor.

“We are going to set up machineries to make sure that jobs given are properly executed according to specification and standards. This commission has zero tolerance for uncompleted projects. So we do hope that if there are five projects that we have in a year, they will completed, commissioned and put to use by the people. So the era of project abandonment is over in this present board.

“It is no longer business usual in DESOPADEC. Before now, people just give people contract in the name of brothers, sisters and friend and at the end of the day nothing is done. This time around it is going to be like that anymore. And those that are crying that they are being owed by the commission, before we give them anything we are going to verify the extent at which the job they were given has gone.

“We have observed that a lot of things went wrong in the past. But this time around we are going to correct them. In this new board we want to make sure that few jobs are given and completed instead of giving many jobs and none of them is completed. This time around we are going to make sure that we go out there and monitor the level of job completion”, Chief Itihwi said.

On youth restiveness, Chief Itihwe said that the commission is putting in place strategies to engage all the youths in Delta State, adding that the era where youths are given money was over. He said more emphasis will be laid on skills acquisition where youth will be trained in various skills to help them become self reliance.

He said: “DESOPADEC is trying to address this situation by designating skill acquisition centers where youths could be trained in various skills. Presently DESOPADEC has designated Ughara, Ethiope West, Afisieri in Ughelli North and Otu-Jeremi in Ughelli South as training centers for youths in Delta Central. This will go a long way in reducing youth restiveness in our communities. We all know that cash does not survive time but your skills will survive time.”

He assured the Urhobo nation that he will leave his footprint on the rock of time, vowing that he will not embark on any white elephant project, but that all his projects will be projects that the people will see and feel the impact in their lives.

“I want to leave my footprints in the rock of time. If I said in the sand of time, one day it might be washed away. I want to embark on projects that will last for generation to generation so that when people see them they will remember me and the government. I have pledged to myself that I will not be involved in any white elephant projects. I want to embark on projects that will endear the government of the day to the people.

“We all know that fulcrum of this government is prosperity for all. So we want to be remembered for everything that we do for the people so that if we come back tomorrow to ask them for something, they will give it to us. We want to leave projects that will last ages so that even when we leave government the people will remember the government”, Chief Itihwe said.