The attention of our national political leader, former Minister of Information & Culture, Professor Sam Oyovbaire has been drawn to the false and highly misleading statement credited to him about the proceedings of the “Delta Central For 2023” (DC-23), a patriotic pressure group within the Peoples Democratic Party in Delta State. An online magazine, “Oasis magazine.com” falsely credited Professor Oyovbaire with having denied political actors of the South and North Senatorial Districts their right to contest for the office of Governor of Delta State in the forthcoming 2023 elections. In particular, he was falsely credited with haven explicitly called upon political actors in the Central Senatorial District not to accept or be lured into being running mates to any actors of the two other Senatorial Districts because of the zoning arrangement in the State which now leaves that office exclusively to the Central Senatorial District. Our national
leader was said to have made the statement at a recent meeting of DC-23 in Asaba.
There is no doubt that the erudite Professor of Political Science and national activism with an impeccable national and global profile is strongly committed to the essence and strategies of DC-23, and specifically to the zoning arrangement of the PDP in Delta State and indeed at the national level. This principle was established at the foundation of the PDP in 1998 for the objective spread of party offices and in governance structures at the executive and legislative levels. It is an unassailable principle and a robust understanding. Any knowledgeable politician or actor who knows the PDP ought to know about this firm understanding; it is not a written law or agreement in the form of an MoU. The fact that individual actors with undue ambitions breached the understanding has not diminished its value in generating the needed justice, peace, and stability in the Party, in the Country, and in the States. As a foundation and founding member of the PDP since 1998, our renowned Professor knows these matters fully both in theory and in practice including the achievements and challenges of the zoning principle.
In the specific arena of our dear Delta State, the Professor has never left the scene; he indeed worked to ensure the practice of the principal of zoning on the basis of the three Senatorial Districts, not on ethnic nationalities. He was there in 2006/7, and in 2014/5 when the practice was successfully conducted in spite of breaches and challenges by a few unduly ambitious actors but who learnt appropriate lessons. The same experience was observed at the national level.
It is the principle and practice, and the achievements and success of zoning on the basis of Senatorial Districts that propel the establishment and also essence of DC-23. Zoning on this basis Senatorial Districts has given our dear State unquantifiable justice, peace, and stability. DC-23 is out to generate and share this understanding. Hence our national leader, Professor Sam Oyovbaire stands firmly with DC-23 to foster friendship and understanding among the political classes. He could not therefore have said what the online magazine associated with him. I dare say that the reporter was not present at the Asaba meeting to have done such bad reporting. In any case if the reporter knows the well known Professor with his unblemished manners and mode of articulation, he could not have done such jaundiced report. If any such statement was made at the meeting and probably heard only by the reporter, it was far away from the lips and personality of our much revered national leader, Professor Sam Oyovbaire.