ASABA-DELTA STATE: After months of speculation, Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori officially defected from the peoples democratic party to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). on Wednesday, ending the PDP’s 26-year control over the oil-rich South-South state.
The announcement came after a high-level meeting of PDP leaders and stakeholders at the Government House in Asaba. James Manager, the PDP’s pioneer state chairman, made the declaration public,
stating that the decision followed extensive consultations and a unanimous agreement among party leaders.
“The current PDP chairman, the governor, deputy governor, speaker, immediate past governor, National Assembly members, and state legislators—all were present. Everyone who matters in Delta politics was involved,” Mr. Manager said.
He cited the prolonged leadership crisis within the PDP and the party’s weakened national standing as key reasons for the defection, particularly ahead of the next general elections.
“Just recently, the PDP Governors’ Forum resolved not to form coalitions. But with only 11 governors left, how do you expect to face an incumbent president and win?” he questioned. “That decision crushed the morale of many PDP members.
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The manager added that the instability in the party’s national leadership and the inability to present a unified front made continued affiliation untenable. I’ve been with the PDP since its inception, but I can’t stay on a sinking ship. As a riverine man, I know when to jump.”
Beyond national concerns, local political tensions also played a role in the governor’s move. Oborevwori’s longstanding rift with former governor James Ibori, a key figure in Delta politics, has further complicated his position. Ibori distanced himself from Oborevwori after his preferred candidate lost the 2022 PDP governorship primary to the current governor.
Though Oborevwori won the general election without Ibori’s support, the ex-governor’s close ties to President Bola Tinubu, along with Tinubu’s political influence in the state, bolstered by allies like ex-militant leader Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo), presented a formidable opposition.
The death of Ijaw leader Edwin Clark, a major supporter of the governor, also left Oborevwori without a significant counterbalance. The defection of key PDP figures, such as Senator Ned Nwoko, further weakened the party’s local structure. Nwoko, now a prominent figure in the Anioma region, welcomed the governor’s switch to the APC, stating that he and other party leaders were ready to collaborate with the new entrants.
It is not clear if the anti-graft agency would close its file of the former governor’s alleged sleaze, even though a former national chairman of the party once said all sins are forgiven with membership of the APC.
However, the most important factor behind Mr Obovrevwori’s movement was the realisation that the PDP had become jaded in Delta State after a lengthy rule
The party that governed the Nigerian economic strategic states since 1999 lost the 2023 presidential election in the state despite the sitting governor, Mr Okowa, being on the PDP ticket as Atiku Abubakar’s running mate. The Labour Party won the state handily with 55 per cent of the vote to the PDP’s meagre 26 per cent.
The PDP also lost two senatorial seats to the APC, although it won eight of the 10 House of Representatives seats and the governorship election with 55 per cent of the vote.
This was a precipitous fall for a party that used to mark Delta as a safe bet.
Surrounded by adversaries like Messrs Ibori, Nwoko, and Tompolo, and with his party losing grassroots support, Mr Obovrevwori decided to flee the PDP to the APC.
His new party may not be more popular in the state. However, it at least offers him the sympathy of the federal government and a respite from attacks from the president’s local friends and sympathisers.
