ORUBEBE HAS STOLEN BILLIONS FROM NIGER/DELTA MINISTRY TO BRIBE PDP DELEGATES . Elder Godsday Orubebe (CON) – the only aspirant from Delta South so far– This Ijaw born politician from Ogbebagbene in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State has had a somewhat smooth political journey so far. After graduating from the University of Lagos, he contested and won his first election – Ward counsellor in Burutu LGA. He later won election and became Chairman of Burutu LGA. After the 1999 election, he was appointed as the second member of SUPEB. Orubebe had major disagreement with some prominent PDP Leaders in his LGA and decamped to ANPP, where he contested and became Delta State Party Chairman. Because he led ANPP to victory in many LGA including Burutu, Ibori’s men approached him, made him some good offers and persuaded him to re-join the PDP train. He obliged, and when Ibori was returned as Governor, Orubebe was appointed Special Advisor on Urban & Regional Planning. It is no longer news that Orubebe is one of the longest serving Ministers in the country, but there is general resentment against his gubernatorial candidacy because he failed to empower his supporters. Not a single person in Delta North, apart from Sam Osasa, his greedy S.A, was empowered. Even those in the E.K Clark group who joined him to fight Ibori were completely neglected. Also, the public fight between him and his erstwhile God-father – Chief E.K Clark, will militate against him when it matters most, as the National leader has vowed to support Delta North-the only district which has not produced a governor. A lot of people in the defunct ANPP see him as a betrayal; somebody who traded them off when it mattered most. Also, he has been accused of carting away all the money meant for the development of the Niger-Delta region and abandoning the East-West Road. For example, it is alleged that he had promised that the East-West Road will be completed in December 2014, but facts on ground suggest otherwise. Only recently, the current Minister for Niger-Delta Affairs– Steve Oru stated that the contractors handling the East-West Road were not paid despite the fact that they have been working with their own funds. He further stated that the only job he does right now is paying them to ensure that he makes President Jonathan and the region proud (Vanguard 19th July – page 50). Finally, he is generally perceived as a gossip monger, as well as someone who says one thing and does another. Issues of religion are seen by many as a cover-up for some of his nefarious activities ranging from womanising to intolerance of his subordinates. Only recently, one of his staunchest men from Delta Central – Chief Orido (who was one of the signatories to the petition against Chief E.K Clark), stated that Orubebe’s lies have become unbearable and suddenly, the man left his camp. A female Media aid and former girlfriend - Barrister Mary Agbajo is currently going about telling anyone who cares to hear, that Orubebe is a serial liar who lacks the competence and integrity to rule. She has echoed that Orubebe’s caucus is made up of greedy, arrogant and fetish persons, some of who are non-Deltans, who do not have the interest of Deltans at heart. There is bitter rivalry and confusion in the leadership of his NGO – Delta Peoples Forum and some of his Directors are helpless politicians who lack the courage to challenge his purposeless leadership style. Just a few days ago, one of the most pragmatic insiders and the Director of Media & Publicity of DPF – Chief Alex Ikpeazu suddenly resigned and has promised to hold a world press conference soon to elaborate on the reasons for his action. Feeler from across the state is that Ikpeazu’s press conference may finally nail Orubebe’s gubernatorial ambition and he may never recover if Ikpeazu sticks to his resignation because of the influence, doggedness and likeability of Ikpeazu by a large majority of Deltans – having performed creditably well as secretary of Delta Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders Forum for many years. Chief Oduaran from Ughelli South has just decamped from DPF siting Orubebe’s lies as one of the reasons for his decision and the list is getting longer. It is speculated that by September this year, there would hardly be anyone left in DPF. Orubebe has put up a strong defence against these allegations, but he needs to do more to convince a majority of the Delta voting population that these assertions are malicious. Initially, he was feared by opponents because of his healthy Abuja connections (but now there is a strong rumour of a crack because of his unauthorised visit to Ibori in a London prison, where he was caught on camera kneeling down for the convict). He is also making a lot of personal consultations with some political heavy weights across the State and boasts that he is going to be the next Governor of Delta State even if everybody decamps from DPF. He also has a very robust synergy with the Leadership of the religious community in the state. STRENGTH – Has a charming and convincing personality using God as a front. WEAKNESS – Viewed as a pathological liar, he has a phobia for empowering people and this is his biggest undoing. Verdict – Unless the Anioma Leaders choose a consensus candidate from the current aspirants or bring in a popular grass-root greenhorn, Orubebe – a charming talker may BUY the PDP primaries with the tons of money he has stashed away with a proviso – only if he mends fences with Abuja, which is hampering on equity amongst the three senatorial districts.
Posted on: Fri, 25 Jul 2014 21:51:14 +0000
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