Ahead of the 2027 general elections, leaders and stakeholders of Ughievwen Kingdom in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State have adopted President Bola Tinubu, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and other candidates of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as their preferred candidates.
Also adopted were Senator Ede Dafinone, representing Delta Central Senatorial District; member representing Ughelli North/Ughelli South/Udu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Francis Ejiroghene Waive; and member representing Ughelli South Constituency in the Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Festus Utuama.
The endorsement was made at a strategic meeting of the Ughievwen Union leadership, community Presidents-General and other stakeholders hosted by the Delta State Commissioner for Works (Highways and Urban Roads), Comrade Reuben Izeze, at his Oginibo residence, weekend.
The meeting attracted executives of the Ughievwen Union, Presidents-General, Secretaries-General, traditional community officials, youth and women leaders from across the 33 communities of the kingdom.
Addressing the gathering, Izeze said the meeting was convened to forge a common political direction for Ughievwen Kingdom and strengthen grassroots mobilisation ahead of the 2027 polls.
He said Tinubu and Oborevwori had justified the confidence reposed in them by Nigerians and Deltans through reforms, infrastructure development and other interventions, insisting that they deserved fresh mandates.
Izeze cited ongoing projects in Eyara and Imode communities, alongside other completed projects across Ughievwen Kingdom, as evidence of the Oborevwori administration’s commitment to equitable development under the MORE Agenda.
He also recalled the Otu-Jeremi/Owhawha-Okwagbe Road project, which he said he attracted while serving in the Delta State House of Assembly during the administration of former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa.
Making a case for Tinubu’s re-election, the Commissioner said the removal of fuel subsidy had significantly increased revenues accruing to states and local governments, thereby strengthening their capacity to execute development projects.
According to him, the increased fiscal inflows had enabled local government councils to undertake projects previously beyond their financial capacity.
He cited the Chairman of Ughelli South Local Government Council, Hon. Lucky Avweromre, whose administration, he said, was transforming the council area through projects aligned with Governor Oborevwori’s MORE Agenda.
Izeze also commended the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, for the provision of 250 solar-powered streetlights in Oginibo, describing the intervention as a major boost to security and socio-economic activities in the community.
He praised Ogbuku’s leadership of the interventionist agency, describing him as one of the outstanding appointees of the Tinubu administration.
Speaking at the meeting, an Otu-Jeremi community leader, Prince Macaulay Dase, appealed to Izeze to facilitate the provision of solar-powered streetlights in the community through the NDDC.
Responding, the Commissioner assured the community that he would make the necessary representations to the commission.
The meeting climaxed with the formal adoption of Tinubu, Oborevwori, Dafinone, Waive and Utuama as Ughievwen Kingdom’s preferred candidates for the 2027 general elections.
The motion was moved by the President-General of the Ughievwen Union, Olorogun Patrick Wheleke, and seconded by Mr. Karim Aghogho, Secretary-General of Ekakpamre Community.
It was thereafter put to a voice vote by Olorogun Sito Ena Godwin and overwhelmingly endorsed by the stakeholders with a resounding “yes.”