‘No vacancies in Aso Villa, Delta Govt House’

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September 2, 2025 by Our Reporter

Former member of the House of Representatives from Ethiope Constituency, John Agoda, spoke with ELO EDREMODA on the Delta State All Progressives Congress (APC)’s preparations for 2027 polls.

Senator Ovie Omo-Agege is rumoured to be interested in contesting the 2027 governorship election. How do you react?

My reaction is simple and blunt: Omo-Agege is living in self denial. His time has passed. Delta APC has moved on, but he is stuck in yesterday’s shadows clutching at an ambition that Deltans already rejected in 2023. His fresh push to contest the 2027 governorship election is not the rebirth of a political vision. It is the recycling of a failed project that is dead on arrival. Instead of rallying behind our sitting governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, who is now the leader of APC, he wants to contest against him. That’s like setting fire to your own house because you don’t like the curtains. It is a voyage to nowhere.

In the past, you praised Omo-Agege’s brilliance in the Senate.Does that endorsement still stand

That endorsement has since expired in the light of recent political events. Yes, Omo-Agege had his moment in the Senate. But he already had his shot at the governorship in 2023. Politics is not about recycling ambition like a broken record. If you are rejected once, you don’t force yourself down people’s throats. Delta is not anybody’s inheritance and he should not see the office of the governor as his birthright.

Does Omo-agege’s ambition not contradict the APC Delta Central’s endorsement for President Tinubu and Oborevwori for 2027, given as both of you are from that zone?

It doesn’t just contradict it, it spits on it. That endorsement was a show of unity of the Party in Delta Central where every leader of the party-both old and new-came together in a show of unity and strength. For Omo-Agege to come out and still say he will run is regrettably unfortunate. He is telling the party that his ego matters more than our collective survival. For someone who claims to love APC, he’s doing a wonderful job of trying to tear it apart. But I am very confident that he will not succeed.

Apart from the Delta Central unity meeting, both Delta North and South senatorial districts have also held unity meetings where they endorsed President Tinubu and Governor Oborevwori for 2027. What’s your take, and where does your own constituency stand?

That’s the point. Unity is not just in Delta Central.Delta North and South have also spoken clearly: they are standing with the President and with Governor Oborevwori come 2027. In fact, in my own Ethiope Federal Constituency, our leaders and stakeholders have resolved the same way. We have endorsed Tinubu and Oborevwori because we know that there is no vacancy in Presidential Villa and Government House, Asaba.

Omo-agege’s supporters point at his grassroots appeal as evidence that he is still the man to beat.?

Grassroots appeal? Please, let’s call things by their proper names. If Omo-Agege truly had grassroots appeal, why did Deltans reject him so clearly in 2023, even when he was the sitting Deputy Senate President with so-called “federal might”? Why did he lose to Oborevwori despite boasting of all his so-called “structures”? You cannot fail that spectacularly and still claim to be the darling of the grassroots. That’s like a trader who goes bankrupt claiming to be the wealthiest man in the market. Very laughable. His supporters should wake up from their day dreaming. Real grassroots support is organic; it comes from trust, integrity, and sacrifice for the people. The real grassroots now belong to Oborevwori -he is the sitting governor, embraced by every senatorial district and constituency, including my own Ethiope Federal Constituency.

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Omo-Agege is seen by his supporters as building APC to what it is today and cannot be expected to vacate the house for ‘tenants’. How do you respond to that as one of the old members of the Party?

This is a laughable claim. What do you now say about people like Olorogun O’tega Emerhor. Political memory is very short only for those who choose to forget. Many of us were in the trenches building APC in Delta long before Omo-Agege defected from the Labour Party. Coincidentally, I contested as the party’s 2015 senatorial candidate against him at a time when APC was still struggling to find its footing in Delta State. If there are “landlords” in APC, it is those of us who were here before he even arrived-not someone who came in later, benefited from the structure and now seeks to monopolize it. APC is not Omo-Agege’s private estate and he should not see it as such. It belongs to all of us and to the people of Delta State.

Shettima declared Oborevwori as leader of APC in Delta during the formal defection ceremony in Asaba. Is that the situation in Delta?

The matter of leadership is already settled. The Vice President of Nigeria, standing before the entire country, declared Oborevwori is the leader of APC in Delta. That is the voice of the Presidency and the national party. Leadership is not grabbed; it is bestowed. And it has been bestowed on Oborevwori.

Recently, Sen. Peter Nwaoboshi said he and Chief James Ibori advised Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege, not to run against Oborevwori.

Well, Nwaoboshi has spoken publicly, and he is not a man to fabricate such a serious matter. If he said he advised Omo-Agege, in the presence of former governor James Ibori, not to run against Sheriff Oborevwori, then we must take it seriously.This is typical of Omo-Agege’s camp—always quick to shout “fake” when reality does not suit them. If tomorrow the sun rises from the East, they will say it is fake news because it did not rise from their bedroom window. The truth is bitter, but it is still the truth. Omo-Agege was advised, and he ignored wise counsel. If your own friends are telling you to quit and you still refuse, then what you are carrying is not ambition, that is pride that blinds you to reality. But then again, maybe Omo-Agege believes he knows better than everyone else, even his allies. He wants to run a one-man show. That is not leadership, that is recklessness.

Earlier this year, APC leaders petitioned Omo-Agege over mismanaging campaign funds running into billions and even working against you in the 2023 elections. How do you respond?

That petition alleges that billions of campaign funds were mismanaged and the party suffered for it in the 2023 governorship elections. Instead of strengthening the party, those resources, in my view, were used in ways that undermined fellow candidates and I was a victim. As APC’s candidate in Ethiope Federal Constituency, rather than support me, he worked against me. The video of how he worked against me is still trending out there. Tell me, what kind of leader sabotages his own party’s candidates?

That aside, whatever little credibility he had left was struck a major blow following allegations of mismanagement of the Tantita surveillance jobs meant for the people of Delta central by Pararan mock news online. Those who squander yesterday, sabotage today and betray their own cannot demand tomorrow’s crown.

And up till today, Omo-Agege has not publicly responded to those weighty allegations.Silence, in matters this serious, is not golden.

Recently,Oborevwori, awarded many contracts, including the construction of flyovers at Otovwodo Junction, Ughelli, Agbor and the rehabilitation of the failed portion of the Warri/Sapele Road. Do you think that so far, his performance is enough to guarantee him a second term?

Without a doubt, yes. In fact, Sheriff Oborevwori’s performance so far has been nothing short of commendable. He came into office and hit the ground running, addressing critical infrastructure that had been neglected for years. The flyovers at Ughelli and Agbor are not just cosmetic projects; they are strategic investments that will ease traffic, boost commerce, and open up those areas to greater economic opportunities. The rehabilitation of Warri/Sapele Road is another bold step that touches the lives of ordinary Deltans every single day.What people want from a governor is not empty rhetoric but tangible results-roads they can drive on without breaking their vehicles, infrastructure that makes life easier, and policies that bring development closer to their doorsteps. Gov. Sheriff is delivering all these, and in record time. In fact, his developmental projects are unprecedented.

So, to your question: is his performance enough to guarantee him a second term? My answer is a resounding yes. Given his present trajectory, 2027 will not even be a contest-it will be an endorsement by the people. How do you challenge a performing governor who has the backing of the people, the presidency, and the party? It is political suicide. Sheriff Oborevwori deserves a second term, and Deltans will give it to him gladly.

Moreover, Sen. Peter Nwaoboshi said as much in his interview that you don’t run against a sitting governor in your party who wants a second term and even mentioned ex-Govs Ibori, Okowa and Uduaghan who were not challenged in their second term bids. In circumstances like this, the governor has the right of first refusal if he so chooses.

What’s your message to APC members and Deltans ahead of 2027?

My message is very clear: APC now controls Delta through Gov. Oborevwori. We must consolidate, not tear ourselves apart. Omo-Agege should have the decency to realize by now that his 2027 ambition is dead and buried. He can shout, he can posture and his supporters can spin, but Delta APC has moved on with Gov Sheriff Oborevwori as our sole candidate for 2027 and he should do the same.