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By Amos Okioma, Yenagoa
An industrialist and former minister of state for Education, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi, has called on the political class in Delta State to ensure the Urhobos of the Delta Central Senatorial district produce the next governor of the state in line with the zoning arrangement.
Gbagi made the call weekend while on a familiarization visit to his kinsmen, the Urhobos in Bayelsa State to solicit for their support ahead of the forthcoming governorship election in Delta State.
According to him, though he contested the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primaries in 1999 that produced Chief James Ibori as the party’s candidate, he has stood with the party to continue to build and strengthened the party in the state.
He noted that as the main advocate of the zoning arrangement that saw the emergence of James Ibori, his kinsman from Central Senatorial district as governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan from Delta South, and now Ifeanyi Okowa from Delta North Senatorial district, it is only natural that the governorship position is now returning to the Urhobos.
The former minister of state for Education who urged the Urhobos to continue to pray and support Governor Okowa to finish well and very strong as governor, maintained that Okowa as a very shrewd politician who knows the contributions of the Urhobos towards his emergence as governor as he owes them a duty to return the governorship to them (Urhobos)
Gbagi, while calling on the Urhobos to ensure that they actualize the agreement on the rotation of the governorship seat to the Central Senatorial zone, advised them against being influenced by politicians to mortgage their future and that of generations yet unborn by collecting money during the party primaries.
He lauded Governor Okowa for the monumental transformation going on in the state, and promised to sustain the legacies of the Okowa if elected as governor of Delta State.
He said: “Remember, I was the main advocate of Okowa to be governor on the basis of this. So we did that, Ibori finished his tenure, Uduaghan took over and now Okowa has taken over.
“It is turn but turn, we started with Urhobo, we went to South and we went to North, by natural act of God it is coming back to us now is coming. What I want you people to do is to continue is to pray for Okowa to finish well and stronger.
“Okowa is a very wise politician. Okowa knows and was a party to how we started. If I have written up to 200 articles why everybody should let Okowa continue his first tenure and second term because we have an agreement, he owes Urhobos a duty. Whilst that duty is sacrosanct, you owe yourselves a duty to actualize that promise or agreement as it was reached.”
Early in his welcome remarks, the president of Urhobo Progressive Union (UPU), Bayelsa chapter, Chief Charles Oruru, expressed joy over the visit of the Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi whom he described as an astute industrialist and politician who has impacted the lives of Deltans across board.
Oruru assured Gbagi of the unalloyed support of the Urhobos living in Bayelsa State to ensure that he emerge as the governor of Delta State come 2023.
Also speaking, the Okobaro 1 of Urhobo in Bayelsa, HRM King Joshua Aweyu, commended Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi for remembering and considering the 15,000 numerical voting strength of Urhobo which supported the victory of their host state, Senator Douye Diri, stressing that Urhobos in Bayelsa are set to replicate the feat for their bona fide governorship candidate. “We have done it before during the 2019 governorship election and we are determined to do same for son come 2023.”
Another UPU chieftain, Alfred Tafri, described Olorogun Kenneth as industrialist, business mogul and employer of labour that have impacted on the lives of so many Urhobos through his chain of businesses, adding that when elected as governor he will transform the state with infrastructure and human capital development.
“Gbagi has all that it takes to develop Delta State and needs the support of all the senatorial districts to actualise his ambition,” he said while urging Urhobos to support one of their own.
The Jubilee Hotel was venue of the epochal and historic convergence of who is who in Urhobo residing in Bayelsa State and neighbouring states, while the women came out in their numbers singing songs eulogising his virtues and dances to the admiration of the audience.