By Ufuoma Egbe
The recent outburst by Hon. Godwin Anaughe against Senator Ede Dafinone’s second-term declaration is nothing more than a desperate political tantrum fueled by frustration, insecurity, and the changing political realities in Delta Central Senatorial District — realities that are clearly no longer in favour of his principal, former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege.
Ordinarily, such “Tales by Moonlight” narratives should be ignored. However, because of the deliberate attempt to distort facts, insult the intelligence of APC members, and create unnecessary tension within the party, it has become necessary to respond.
At first glance, one would think Omo-Agege and his media handlers are genuinely concerned about internal democracy and party unity within the APC. But the truth is that they are either suffering from collective amnesia or selective memory.
In the build-up to the 2023 general elections, how were APC candidates selected under Omo-Agege’s leadership? Were there consultations with stakeholders across Delta Central and Delta State before tickets were handed out? Did he carry party leaders along before imposing candidates across various levels of the party structure? This is not anyway validating Anaughe’s imposition claims. The records are clear.
Many aspirants who laboured for the APC complained openly about the arbitrary manner in which candidates emerged under Omo-Agege’s leadership. Several party faithful alleged that tickets were reserved for individuals considered politically useful to his personal ambition and had deep pockets, while loyal party members were sidelined. At the time, there was no outrage from Hon. Anaughe and his group about consultation, fairness, or internal democracy.
It is, therefore, hypocritical for the same political camp that perfected the culture of imposition to suddenly preach democracy because Senator Ede Dafinone is consulting widely and building consensus ahead of 2027.
Contrary to the false claims being peddled, Senator Dafinone’s declaration is not a panic move. As the incumbent Senator representing Delta Central, he has every constitutional and political right to seek re-election. More importantly, unlike Omo-Agege, Senator Dafinone has spent the last three years engaging stakeholders, consulting political leaders, interacting with constituents, and delivering projects across the eight local government areas of Delta Central.
The same cannot be said of Omo-Agege, who has consistently refused to recognise the current leadership structure of the APC in Delta State since Governor Sheriff Oborevwori joined the party. Today, Omo-Agege operates parallel party structures, parallel loyalists, and parallel political networks from the state level down to the wards. So when his supporters talk about party unity, Nigerians must ask: which APC are they referring to?
The truth is that Omo-Agege remains the biggest architect of disunity within Delta APC.
While leaders of the legacy APC have embraced the new political reality and are working with Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to strengthen the party ahead of 2027, Omo-Agege has continued to position himself as a destabilising force, driven by an insatiable quest for power and control.
Even his much-publicised declaration in Orogun exposed this desperation. Rather than a spontaneous political movement, reports and videos from the event showed heavy mobilisation of students and rented crowds hurriedly assembled to create a false impression of popularity. Ironically, while his supporters accuse others of stage-managing declarations, Omo-Agege himself shut down institutions and mobilised crowds in panic because Senator Dafinone’s growing acceptance across Delta Central was beginning to overshadow him.
If Omo-Agege truly commands the overwhelming support he claims, why were many respected APC leaders in Delta Central absent from his declaration? Apart from members of his former political kitchen cabinet and past appointees, the gathering lacked the broad-based support expected of someone claiming ownership of Delta APC.
Another disturbing dimension of this entire propaganda campaign is the subtle but dangerous attempt to weaponise ethnic and kingdom sentiments against the Okpe people.
For the avoidance of doubt, Delta Central Senatorial District belongs to all Urhobo people. No kingdom is inferior to another. The Senate seat has never been permanently zoned to one local government, federal constituency, or kingdom.
Historically, the Ughelli North/Ughelli South/Udu Federal Constituency has occupied the Delta Central Senate seat for about 20 years out of the current democratic dispensation. Within that period, Omo-Agege’s immediate political axis benefited immensely from power concentration, yet nobody promoted division or hatred against them.
Today, because Senator Dafinone, who is from the Okpe axis, seeks re-election after just one term, suddenly, there is propaganda about an “Okpe Agenda.” That narrative is divisive, dangerous, and politically irresponsible.
Ironically, during the 2023 governorship election, Omo-Agege and his supporters openly campaigned for Okpe solidarity, repeatedly identifying themselves as sons of Okpe extraction when it suited their political interests. If being identified with Okpe was acceptable then; what has suddenly changed now?
The truth is simple: Omo-Agege’s current political battle is not about justice, fairness, or party unity. It is about power — absolute power.
Unfortunately, Omo-Agege’s desperation to retain political relevance at all costs is now threatening the peace, stability, and reconciliation process within the Delta APC.
No individual owns the APC in Delta State.
The votes recorded by APC in the 2023 elections were not the personal property of Omo-Agege. Those votes were products of collective sacrifices made by party leaders, stakeholders, women, youths, and supporters across Delta State who genuinely desired political change.
We therefore urge the national leadership of the APC and all genuine party stakeholders to disregard the baseless allegations and emotional blackmail coming from Hon. Anaughe and Omo-Agege’s political camp.
Governor Sheriff Oborevwori deserves commendation, not criticism, for his efforts to build broad-based unity and strengthen the APC in Delta State.
Senator Ede Dafinone’s second-term aspiration is rooted in consultation, performance, inclusiveness, and strategic collaboration for the benefit of Delta Central — not intimidation, division, and political monopoly.
Delta APC must move forward together, not retreat into personal power and endless power struggles.
– Egbe, Public Affairs Analyst writes from Eku
