* human capital development,  Education, Social and Community Development

*The Winning Streak of a Legacy Board

As a mission statement expressly provided in the law setting up DESOPADEC by the Delta State House of Assembly in 2006 and fully activated in July 2007, the Commission is meant “To put smiles on the faces of the people in the host oil and gas producing communities of the State through massive infrastructural and human capital development.”

Without undermining one for the other, the current board rolled up its sleeves from the blast of the whistle to deliver balanced intervention across the mandate areas in critical infrastructure, education, health, housing, water, road, transportation sub-sectors, as well as in re-skilling the youth in a well thought-out, all-purpose vocational programme to empower them.

The result was the creation of the DESOPADEC Skills Acquisition Academy with the endpoint of making the youth properly skilled, gainfully engaged and productively useful to themselves.

This innovative human capital development template which was officially kick-started in the first quarter of 2020 in a well structured non-formal curriculum saw successful pioneer candidates admitted into the scheme in a grand Matriculation Ceremony.

The intent was clear: To give successful trainees a lifetime opportunity in honing their skills in various chosen vocational fields. The skills acquisition scope include Welding and Fabrications; Electrical and Electronic Repairs; Solar Energy Works; Tiling, Interlocking and P.O.P. Works; Catering and Confectioneries; Shoe, Bag Making and Leather Works; Information and Communication Technology, ICT; Health, Safety and Environment, HSE; Fashion Design and Tailoring; Hairdressing and Makeover.

The programme entails a 6-month intensive training and practical exposure, and assessment, evaluation and certification by relevant national technical education boards.

The DESOPADEC Skills Acquisition Academy started with 160 trainees drawn from all six ethnic nationalities within the mandate areas. They underwent an orientation programme on financial management and efficient bookkeeping preparatory for their eventual graduation which was held at the Petroleum Training Institute, PTI., Effurun, Delta State.

The high point of the graduation ceremony was their being well resourced with modern working tools and equipment, aka Starter Packs, to get them to hit the ground running from day one.

It must be stated here that besides the huge investment in their training and starter packs, the graduands also generally got a cash backup of N200,000 each. Some graduands got an extra N500,000 each for emerging as best trainees in their respective fields while a star prize of N1 million was awarded to the Overall Best Trainee.

The extra gestures were borne out of a deep commitment by a responsive team and leadership determined to touch lives in a most salutary and impactful way.
The DESOPADEC Skills Academy has graduated two sessions and graduates its 3rd batch by the end of January 2023 after which the 4th batch would immediately commence.

Mention must also necessarily be made of the highly impactful annual Bursary Scheme in favour of tens of thousands of mandate areas students in Nigerian tertiary institutions.

The impact of this payment to the students is to be appreciated in the fact that many of them have expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Board and Management of DESOPADEC for their responsiveness, especially at the very precarious period of the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

In keeping with tradition, arrangement is already concluded for the commencement of payment of for 2022/2023 within the month of February.

Without doubt, the human capital development agenda of the current DESOPADEC board has been greeted with huge aplomb and commended by Government and diverse traditional and community leaders as a noble partnership that supports the greater vision of the Okowa administration which is to build as many youths in the state into responsible, financially independent and prosperous citizens.

*Education*

Education is one of the parameters used to assess the development of societies and regions, especially by the Sustainable Development Goals. It thus has remained a key sectorial focus in the development of DESOPADEC mandate areas.

Since its establishment in 2007, DESOPADEC has given utmost attention to education through diverse expressions and the Askia Ogieh-led board has sustained this noble trend since its inauguration in August 2019 to embark on delivering brand new or completely renovated or refurbished blocks of classrooms, Lecture Halls, ICT facilities, perimeter fencing, water schemes, Principal Lodges, Lecturers and Staff Quarters, Student Hostels and Halls of Residence, Corpers Lodges, provision of books and furniture, amongst a range of other facilities all tailored towards guaranteeing a conducive environment for teaching and learning.

These landmark projects in the education sub-sector which are in hundreds litter the ethnic nationalities of the Commission’s mandate areas. They span all cadres of education – elementary, secondary and tertiary – and draw directly from the needs assessment policy and consultations with the respective benefitting communities.

These interventions address inadequacies and help to still the billows of agitation and apprehension that seem to linger over time.

Despite the global COVID-19 pandemic that threatened lives and upended the socio-economic fortunes of nations, it is incredible that the board could very decisively take on many cost-intensive projects in the sector and deliver at high quality.

*Social and Community Development*

The social and community development sector is one of the most strategic areas in which the Commission has recorded remarkable impact in touching the lives of both its internal and external publics through massive projects.

The construction of social and cultural monument projects by the current board of the Commission is consonant with its corporate policy and strictly guided by the needs assessment of the respective benefitting communities.

Today, the Commission has practically intervened, alongside many other sectors, in delivering well designed, fully furnished, breathtaking, state-of-the-art and aesthetically appealing civic centres that meet cultural exigencies and stoke intrinsic pride in various communities across its mandate areas.

Some of the interventions ranging from outright construction to renovation include the unifying cultural edifice popularly known as “Opute Hall” at Ozoro in Isoko North LGA; the sprawling Bashorun Askia Civic Centre at Uzere, Isoko South LGA; Obodo Town Hall, Warri South LGA; National Town Hall, Ogume, Ndokwa West LGA; Sokebolou Civic Centre, Burutu LGA; the newly constructed and fully furnished Ultra Modern Osubi Civic Centre at Okpe LGA; the Ultra Modern Market with lock-up shops and expansive parking lot at Uzere, Isoko South L.G.A, amongst others.

The projects attest to the ever proactive and responsive approach of the current board in fostering business, interaction and bonding among the people.

Nothing truly could be too much to achieve this focal objective. Little wonder the awards have kept pouring in in torrents to a Commission that has become the toast of a dozen media and award conferment establishments!

Undoubtedly, our testimonial of infrastructure and human capital development interventions evidence a deep commitment to the elevation of human dignity and environmental equity for the people and communities of Delta State oil producing areas. It is a commitment that DESOPADEC will continue to rekindle for the good of the people.

Democracy is really, an interesting game.

The Senatorial primaries of the PDP ahead of the 2003 general elections was keenly contested in Delta North. Then, I was the Arrowhead of the media, packaging Sen. Patrick Osakwe’s re-election bid. His greatest opponent was Dr Esther Uduehi in the primary elections of the PDP. That primary election was held three times due to political reasons. The last one was held at the Indoor Hall of Asaba Stadium, now Stephen Keshi International Stadium. Governor Ifeany Okowa, who was a Commissioner then, played key roles in that primary election. On the election day, yours sincerely chronicled why Sen. Osakwe (may God rest his soul) deserved to win that election. Fortunately, Chief Ibori was an avid reader of The Pointer Newspaper and after reading the one page piece, he moved straight from Government House to the stadium. Mr Paul Owumi may recall what happened to the glass door of the indoor stadium on that day.

At the election venue, Chief Ibori made it clear that any Commissioner whose local government’s delegates did not vote for Senator Osakwe should consider his appointment terminated on the spot. That was what secured victory for Sen. Osakwe who left the stadium straight to The Pointer Newsroom to say, THANK YOU.

That is the power of the pen when used constructively.

Few days to another election, I am just wondering where we got it wrong in the media space. Is it because of social media that people throw decorum to the wind or just because no one is ready to follow the tortuous journey of libel and defamation? We read lies, character assassinations everyday and in most cases, some of these lies are not in the interest of those they claimed to be defending.

If Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori could hold members of the Delta State House of Assembly intact from May 11th, 2017 to date without hiccups, then, one can give him kudos for being a good manager of persons bearing in mind that all the local government areas of the state are represented at the Delta State House of Assembly. Of course, his management acumen was expected, he was the National Treasurer and now the Deputy Chairman of the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria.

He is a member of the Nigerian Institute of Management (Chartered) and also a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators (FICMC). He is also, a Fellow, Nigerian Institute of Management (FNIM) and also a recipient of numerous awards, including Merit Award from the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and Lawmaker Of The Year Award by the Independent Newspapers Ltd.

As such, if Deltans are to go by the behaviour and decisions of their representatives in the House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, has already emerged as unopposed.

He began his political career as a Councilor/Supervisory Councilor for Works in 1996 under the old Okpe Local Government Area, which included the present Udu and Uvwie Local Government Areas and was Special Assistant on Youth Development to Governor James Ibori (2003 – 2006); Special Adviser on Land Security to Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (2007 to 2010); State Coordinator for the Amnesty Programme (2009 – 2010); and Senior Special Assistant on Security to the Governor (2012 – 2014). Haba!

But, again, one can ask some pertinent questions – is it right for Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborovwori to contest? The answer is obviously, YES. First his people, the people of Okpe Constituency found him worthy to contest for House of Assembly and for two consecutive times, he emerged victorious. At the House of Assembly, the members found him worthy to choose him as their leader, that is, Speaker, and he has comfortably led them since 2017and he is about to lead not just the lawmakers but with the cooperation of well meaning Deltans, he is set to lead all Deltans from Saturday, 18 March, 2023 when he gets most of the votes from the people of the state.

Also, we have heard stories about his educational qualifications including court cases for him to prove if really he is the owner of the certificates that he is brandishing. When one reads such, one wonders how his people, the people of Okpe who knew him more than most Deltans, at least, they knew him from “home” did not raise such issues when he contested. But, obviously, it is like Mr Speaker is more qualified academically than all his opponents so his case is like that of “a ripe mango is what people throws stone at.” But, from the way he has managed the state Legislature, will his academic qualifications deprive Deltans from sending him to the Executive arm of government as Governor? The answer is, NO bearing in mind that what is required is a good manager of man and resources to be the Governor of Delta State. His academic qualifications are in order.

As I was writing this piece, I put a call through to the Chief Press Secretary, (CPS) to the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, State PDP Governorship Candidate for the March 18th, 2023 governorship Election and National Deputy Chairman of the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria, a senior colleague who was with me in The Pointer Newspaper’s stable, Comrade Dennis Otu who forwarded detailed certificates of Rt. Hon. Oborevwori who is an Elder in Living Faith Church (aka Winners Chapel) as reproduced below:

“He completed his basic education at Alegbo Primary School, Effurun and later obtained his WASSC at Oghareki Grammar School, Oghareki. Thereafter, he earned a B.Sc. degree in Political Science from Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma and also an M.Sc. Political Science from Delta State University, Abraka.

In his quest for more knowledge, experience, capacity building and self-development, he attended various courses and obtained certificates from various institutions including:

*Certificate in Top Executive Leadership Programme, Manchester Business School, UK;

*Certificate in Legislative Framework for Budget Management, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, USA;

*Certificate in Legislative Management and Leadership, International Law Institute, Washington DC, USA;

*Certificate in Leading Inclusive Development, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK;

*Certificate in Advanced Leadership Programme, University of Cambridge, UK;

*Executive Training on Advanced Leadership and Communication School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; among others. ”

So, academically, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori parades an array of certificates from well known institutions within and outside the country

Rt. Hon. Oborevwori, is a happily married man and proud grand-father. It takes a lot to play these roles effectively and he has also, not failed to dedicate his successes to God.

As Deltans come out to choose who will govern them as from May 29th, 2023, who will they choose? Someone who has always been with them, someone they have known all along and are aware of what he is capable of doing or someone they knew little about?

What is the interest of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa in the governorship elections? Follow us for more as we pray for God’s guidance and protection as we elect our Governor and House of Assembly members on Saturday, March 18, 2023.

Fidelis Egugbo, the writer, is the Special Assistant, Media to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State

Everyone In Delta Knows That Omo-Agege Is A Complete Pagan- Says Oghenevwaire Mukoro

It was initially with incredulity, though later with some degree of understanding but not acceptance, that I received a recent news report to the effect that the parish priest of St. Jude’s Catholic Church, Effurun, Delta State, affirmed that the All Progressives Congress, APC, gubernatorial candidate for Delta, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, is a baptised and practicing member of the Catholic Church, therefore a Christian.

I had initially received the statement attributed to the parish priest, Father Mark Ikeke, with total stupefaction because I know that Father Ikeke, himself, like every true Deltan of his status and level of awarenesses, knows full well that Ovie Omo-Agege is a complete pagan and solid practitioner of Traditional African Religion to the core.

I later came to some understanding of why a Catholic priest would feel constrained to issue such a factually untenable statement because this is where the syncretic reality of the religiousness of many Nigerians has brought us.

Interestingly, I had often attended mass at St Jude’s, Effurun GRA, especially while Father Oghenejode Abaka was the parish priest and was still putting finishing touches to the church which was then, more or less, still in construction.

General Dominic Oneya was also often a worshipper at the parish at the time.

That Ovie Omo-Agege goes to church, and specifically the Catholic Church like other members of his family, is not in any doubt.

Indeed, they claim to be a Catholic family just like mine since his late father, Justice James Omo-Agege, also attended the Catholic Church, and it is really thanks to him that all the Omo-Ageges ended up being baptised into the Catholic Church.

In Ovie Omo-Agege’s case, he was apparently baptised as “Augustine”, in honour of St Augustine of Hippo, present day Tunisia, one of the greatest theologians in world history and pillar of the early church, therefore “Augustine” is his baptismal name.

That said, the question remains as to what it takes to be a true Catholic because the essentials of what it takes to be one are exactly the same as what it takes to be a true Christian regardless of one’s denomination.

When interrogated from this inescapable and unavoidable standpoint, the Omo-Ageges, from their late father, a former Chief Judge of Delta State, to Ovie, current Deputy Senate President and governorship candidate, are not any kind of true Catholics, therefore are not true Christians by any definition of that religious category.

The Omo-Ageges are actually the ones who brought a particularly fetish and exceedingly diabolical brand of “Igbe”, the worship of “Olokun” the sea goddess, more widely known as “Mammy Water”, to Orogun clan of Urhobo a long time ago.

The Omo-Ageges do not merely go to worship Mammy Water the same way the average pagan does by going to a shrine where there’s an Igbe priest waiting to attend to them.

It is rather other pagans who come to the Omo-Ageges to worship Mammy Water because the Omo-Ageges are the owners of their own Igbe and are the ones who officiate as priests and priestesses of the Water goddess at their family owned Water spirit shrine at Orhomuru Orogun that is now more than one hundred years old and still bristling with activity on designated days of worship!

The long established practice of the family owned Igbe of the Omo-Ageges is for the position of chief priest to pass from father to son.

That has been the case since their ancestor first brought it to Orogun from what is now the present boundary between Delta and Rivers states in a region dominated by the Ndokwa of Delta and Ndoni/Andoni of Rivers.

Thus, Justice James Omo-Agege inherited it from his own father even as Ovie Omo-Agege, as eldest son, inherited it from him.

Everyone that is not an accursed pathological liar in Orogun, in Ughelli town, in Ughelli North and in the rest of Urhoboland knows this fact and, may the judgement of God fall heavily on anyone who dares to deny it.

Funny enough, the Omo-Ageges are by no means the only Urhobos or Deltans from elsewhere in the state, for that matter, who had family owned pagan shrines passed down from generation to generation.

Many such families have since abandoned these fetish and dark obscurantist traditions and embraced Christ Jesus as Lord, Redeemer and Saviour.

In fact, the overwhelming majority of such pagan movements simply came to an end when there was no eldest son, daughter or any other offspring willing to takeover from their parents and continue in paganism.

This is actually remarkably commonplace in the religious evolution of Delta, as well as, the rest of Nigeria, and indeed, Africa, in general, and accounts much for the continuing extinction of Mammy Water worship and similar practices across this part of the world.

What is therefore truly remarkable is how come a family as generationally educated and supposedly exposed as the Omo-Ageges have for over a century remained devotees of Olokun, bluntly refused to abandon pagan worship and have been dragging numerous people into the fetish worship of Mammy Water while all the while pretending to be genuine Catholic Christians!

Father Ikeke was quoted to have asserted that “for the avoidance of doubt, Senator Barr. Ovie Omo-Agege is a baptized, practicing and dedicated member of the Roman Catholic Church” and that “he is a member of and a communicant in St. Jude Catholic Church, GRA, Effurun in Uvwie LGA”.

Of course, on the surface, all of that is true except that as to substance, even Father Ikeke, himself, knows he was lying through his teeth.

A church is what it is and it opens its arms, as it does its doors, to absolutely any and everyone willing to seek the Face of God.

Indeed, a church is by far the easiest place to enter in this world!

It has to be so because it is the House of God and must welcome everyone in the hope of bringing them to repentance and salvation.

The theology and Canon Law of Christianity does not preclude anyone from being baptized, not even the child of a notorious pagan, for that child, in his or her own right, is a child of God on its own account, with its own destiny different from that of its parents.

Where, however, such child grows up and instead of abandoning the pagan practices of the parents chooses to embrace them thereby sustaining them even to the extent of enticing others into the worship of idols and false gods, such person is most certainly not any kind of Catholic or other Christian category as Father Ikeke certainly knows more than anyone else.

This is the case with Ovie Omo-Agege, even to the extent of regularly bringing his children who were born and live in America down to Orogun, not merely to know their African home and roots but essentially to gradually and steadily initiate them into the worship of Mammy Water!

I believe Father Ikeke felt he had no choice but to defend someone who on the surface could pass himself off as a Christian and parishioner like any other.

But, it is not as if various members of his parish are randomly accused of being rabid pagans and unrepentant practitioners of wickedness, unwholesome devotions, idolatry and godlessness as is the case with Ovie Omo-Agege.

It is because everyone knows that his fake parishioner, Ovie Omo-Agege, is a complete pagan that he is being outed as such and Father Ikeke cannot pretend not to know that, as much as he must square up before God to the doctrinal question of the propriety of giving communion to someone he knows for a fact is a pagan.

While I somewhat sympathize with his plight, I am also aware that God is not a respecter of persons and what was actually called for in this case is for Father Ikeke to have spoken truth to power and denounced Omo-Agege for trying to be hot and cold at the same time in direct and unmistakable contradiction to the express dictates of Christ Jesus, Himself, who declared that such persons will be spitted out by God.

Rather than shamefully rush to the defense of a counterfeit Christian, Father Ikeke should have summoned the courage as a priest of The Most High God to set an example for other Christians that there is simply and absolutely no place for mixing paganism with Christianity in the Body of Christ.

I am sorry to have to put it this bluntly but Father Ikeke’s “parishioner”, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, is a disgrace to his parish, an embarrassment to the Catholic Church and a complete disappointment to Christianity.

Factually speaking, Omo-Agege is a man that is a total disgrace to Christian values, indeed one who often displays extreme cruelty, aloofness, insensitivity, lack of empathy, pathological greed, lack of human feeling, and a most abhorrent degree of selfcenteredness that is totally unbecoming of a believer and completely contrary to the Culture of Christ.

Most political players in the know in Delta remember him as an adept practitioner of forgery, graft, embezzlement and conversion while he was Executive Assistant and later Secretary to the State Government, SSG, under the administration of the exconvict, James Ibori.

Ask any politician who knew Ovie Omo-Agege in Government House, back then, and they would tell you “Omo-Agege is the biggest thief in the history of Delta State”!

Funny enough, the same reputation has followed him in his senatorial career as an inquiry into his activities as senator and Deputy Senate President would readily reveal.

Our Lord Jesus Christ said that “by their fruits you shall know them” and upon this divinely ordained standard, Omo-Agege is not a Christian by any measure both as to his true religious persuasion, as well as, in terms of his totally ungodly way of life.

But, is there really anything wrong with Ovie Omo-Agege being the complete pagan and Chief Priest of Igbe and unrepentant Mammy Water devotee he is?

Well, we have religious freedom in this country and in any case freedom of religion is a fundamental human right of absolutely each and every one of us in this world.

However, people should be forthright enough to own up to their true religion rather than try to pull the wool over the eyes of others pretending to be what they are not.

This is especially important when they present themselves before the electorate as fit and proper persons to be elected to public office, indeed more significantly so when it is no less than the office of Governor of a state that is at stake.

It is the right of the electorate to know the kind of person they should be electing as Governor.

If as a state with an overwhelmingly Christian population, they do not mind recruiting a complete pagan and worshipper of marine spirits as a Governor and placing the destiny of their state in the hands of a godless individual, then so be it but no one should be allowed to scam them into thinking he is a Christian like the rest of them when he does not actually believe in Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

To decide to follow Jesus is to follow Him without turning back, for you cannot serve two masters at the same time according to the Holy Bible.

Yet, there is a difference if someone is a Christian and backslides into making charms or consulting native doctors or soothsayers when faced with difficult situations or seemingly intractable problems, as long as they come to genuine repentance and commit to never betraying God, ever again because there is simply no room for religious syncretism in Christianity.

It is a totally different matter altogether where the person is a regular and unrepentant pagan who is merely using Christianity to cover up his true religious affiliation as the Omo-Ageges have been doing for a very long time.

It is even far worse where the person is not just an ordinary pagan but a chief priest of Mammy Water.

APC candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege is not a Catholic and is not any other kind of Christian.

He is a well-known Igbe man and on their days of worship, as well as, on their feast days, you will see him fully dressed in marine spirits red and white attire, indeed in complete Mammy Water regalia and unmistakable Igbe vestments, in his village, Orhomuru Orogun, dancing Igbe, and leading other devotees in worship of false gods!

Omo-Agege is a man so committed, dedicated, devoted and addicted to marine spirits that he built his house in his village right beside the river even though he had access to more solid land elsewhere in the community!

He wants to offer sacrifices to Mammy Water and he just opens a small gate in his fence and he is right by the stream, throwing all kinds of things into the river in honour of the water goddess!

That is how much of a complete pagan Omo-Agege really is.

The truth is bitter but it must be told and Deltans are entitled to know this and to bear it in mind as they go out to vote on Saturday, 18 March, 2023.

Oghenevwaire Mukoro, an educationist, writes from Warri.