Over the past few days, I have been embroidered in a moral dilemma over how to respond to the defamatory petition written by Dr. Festus Okubor against Senator Ned Munir Nwoko (NMN), my constraint arose out of respect for elders, an important norm in Anioma culture.
However as I read the petition over and over again, the respect I have for him melted away.
His disgusting petition against Senator NMN with all the lies he struggled very hard to sprue in it and his dystopian presentation of the Senator’s bold stand on the screw project execution in Anioma part of the Delta state gave him out as a political bootlicker and a willing horse for hatchet jobs. Of course, by all intent and purpose, his slanderous letter to the Chairman of Delta PDP, wherein he concocted every imaginable and unimaginable lie to *nail* Senator NMN bears the hallmark of a hatchet job.
It is depressing to see how Dr Okubor, a former Commissioner, and Chief of staff under former Governor Uduaghan, and a one-time PDP governorship aspirant could allow himself to be reduced to an eran boy and an undertaker for dirty jobs for the political behemoths in Delta State.
Before I dive further into the insane and highly provocative letter, I like to invite Dr Okubor and his gang of attention seekers to take a deeper look at Senator NMN’s resume, his background in particular…
Senator NMN schooled, lived, and practiced law in a clime where citizens hold their elected officers accountable, where citizens ask their elected officers how state resources are expended, where elected officers often go back to their constituents to present their report cards, and most importantly, where elected officers are not worshiped like demigods.
Senator NMN is widely traveled, and widely read, he has gone to places and seen how societies are organized, how states are governed, and how democracy works.
So, How does Dr. Okubor think he can ‘tame’, ‘mould’, or ‘bend’ such a highly exposed and cerebral individual to turn a blind eye to the developmental needs of his people?
I also want to remind Dr Okubor that Senator NMN did not just wake up and find himself in the hallow chamber of the Nigerian Senate, he worked very hard to be there. He took time to prepare for it and he had a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve at the Senate, he had plans to bring succor to Delta North people and since he was elected, he has been razor-focused on delivering on his promise, whilst giving Anioma people a strong voice and resounding presence at the Senate.
Back in 2019, as he aspired for the Delta North Senate seat, Senator NMN designed a cut-out plan of action, what he wanted to accomplish for the Anioma people at the Senate, these plans were boldly stated in his well-circulated manifesto, tagged Manifesto Of Integrity And Service. I know it may be surprising to the likes of Dr. Okubor to hear that someone who is aspiring to be a Senator has a manifesto, a master plan, and an outline of what he needs to address, to ameliorate the suffering of the Anioma people, using the instrument of the Senate
Senator NMN, had no option than to take this action because he had observed that his party had no plan for Delta North, and the recent happenings vindicated him.
Senator NMN is a visionary politician, he is unlike some individuals who just rise from their beds and jump into the Senate race, without under-studying the pressing needs of the people they want to represent. No! Senator NMN is not like his predecessors who went there for ego massage, while turning their eyes to the other side, pretending that central issues affecting the area do not exist.
Senator Ned Nwoko’s Manifesto Of Integrity And Service
Senator NMN’s vision for the Anioma people was encapsulated in his manifesto of Integrity and Service, a ten-page brochure envisioned under the *Rescuer template* which encompasses everything he wanted to do to rescue the Anioma people from a life of misery and deprivation, chief among the projects and issues captured in his manifesto were:
1. The construction of Oko, Abala, Okpai, and Aboh roads down to communities in Isoko to join the southwest highway at Patani
This road if constructed will provide access rosd for a whole lot of the agrarian communities in that axis enabling them to ferry their farm produce to urban centers for sale to generate income to fend for their household.
Thankfully, through his dogged efforts, Senator NMN has influenced the NDDC to capture the road project in next year’s budget.
2. Execution of the Okpai Stepdown project
This project is central to the Ndokwa people, as it remains a case study on internal slavery in modern Nigeria. A situation where a people who host a gigantic Power Plant that supplies electricity to faraway states in the country, had to endure the agony of living in darkness, is immoral and unacceptable. Senator NMN cannot take that.
His stands on the execution of this project was a center point of his manifesto. He used it to campaign for PDP during the 2023 general election and as a promise keeper, Senator NMN has taken it up at the highest level of government, this of course is one of the causes of the misunderstanding between him and the Delta State Governor, which Dr Okubor and his cohorts are feasting on.
3. Gas Flaring In Delta North
Gas flaring contributes to global warming, it leads to environmental degradation, polluting the air and running water. It is the major causes of acid rain, which lead to serious health problems
Multinational oil companies operating in the district have been carrying out this harmful practice for decades unchallenged (something they cannot do in their home countries). Senator NMN has raised the issue before the Senate, and it is drawing the attention of the federal government. Be rest assured that something will be done about it very soon.
4. The Ogwashi Ukwu Dam
Residents of Ogwashi Ukwu can testify that getting water in the area is a herculean task hence the dam project was initiated by Rt Hon NMN when he was then House of Rep member representing Aniocha/Oshimili Federal Constituency, (1999-2003).
Rt Hon. Pascal Adigwe, his successor, and an Ogwashi Ukwu indigene picked up the project. The project is almost 90% completed. What is remaining is to pipe it down to supply water to the community and its environs and also to tap power from it. This is another issue causing the impasse in PDP, which people like Dr Okubor want to use to pave their way to the inner circle of the Party – Delta State Government
5. Federal Roads
Senator NMN has raised a motion drawing the attention of the Federal Government to the dilapidated condition of the Benin/Onitsha expressway, the Onicha Ugbo Ewohimi road, and the Asaba, Illah Ubiaja road, and all other such failed federal roads in the zone. It will not be too long before we begin to witness positive actions on the roads.
6 Anioma State Creation
Although this was not in his original plan, Senator NMN as the Senator with the mandate to speak for the Anioma people at the Senate, and as a member of the *elite Senate committee on restructuring and review of the constitution* has access to privileged information, which indicated that President Tinubu wants to leave a legacy of correcting the obvious imbalance in state creation distribution in Nigeria, between the North and Southern Nigeria, (19 states in the North, 17 states in the South) and amongst the geopolitical zones. Senator NMN is a man who does not allow an opportunity to slip by his side without grabbing it, when he saw this window of opportunity to achieve the age-long dream of the Anioma people to have a State they can proudly call theirs, he did not hesitate to sponsor a bill for the creation of Anioma State as the 37th State of the federal republic of Nigeria.
7. Electrification Of Communities In Delta North
Senator NMN has pledged to electrify all the communities in Delta North with Solar power and the program has kicked off in Ndokwa West Local Government Area, very soon it will get to other Local Government Areas in the district.
8 Ned Nwoko Foundation
Through the Ned Nwoko Foundation, Senator NMN has offered scholarships to thousands of indigent students in Delta North.
He has empowered and continued to empower thousands of widows, the elderly, and the vulnerable,
His youth skill acquisition program is top-notch.
9. LGA Coordinators
As part of his plans to get in constant touch with constituents, Senator NMN appointed 9 LGA coordinators covering the 9 LGAS in the senatorial district.
Their duties include but are not limited to
A. Giving him regular feedback on the pressing needs of the communities in their areas that may require his attention.
B. Passing information to the youth on available federal jobs and helping them process the application for such jobs.
C. Drawing up data on the widows, indigent students, and the vulnerable in the district for equitable distribution of needed assistance/dividends of democracy.
Going back to Dr Okubor’s ill-advised petition
#DrOkuborsucks Going through all the things Senator NMN has done and what he plans to do, I do not see a single reason for Dr Okubor’s insane petition against the Senator, therefore, I have no sympathy for Dr. Okubor, for his inability to process the tremendous achievement of Senator NMN within a short time at the Senate and I have no pity for him if he bears the indignity of having a go-getter as his Senator who is doing his job with dignity, who is well respected amongst his peers and whose voice commands great attention on the floor of the Senate. He can go to hell if he feels humiliated by actions his Senator who is diligently correcting the neglect of his anti-people cult, he called a political party.
Dr. Okubor should know that we are not living in the Biblical Jesus Christ era where people fold their hands and watch their best stone to death. If he is itching for a taste of Gov. Oborevwori’s Ukodo (pepper soup) he should not use Senator NMN to pave his way.
Dr. Okubor should understand that he who fetches ant-infested firewood, invites lizards for a Christmas party in his house and he should understand that no one puts his hand on a beehive without being stung.
Come to think about this, why did Dr Okubor release the letter of petition he sent to the State PDP Chairman to the Press? Is it not supposed to be a confidential matter between him, the Party Chairman, and Senator NMN? Are the issues he raised, if there is any, not internal affairs of PDP? Why did he go to the press? Who is he trying to impress? I guess he wants to show his Ogas, that he has done what he was ordered to do.
He is not new in the dirty game of ‘pull him down’. He is easily manipulated.
Recall that during his 2015 dead-on-arrival governorship bid, he was then the chief of staff to Gov Uduaghan, and when the gov swore that he would never hand it over to the then Senator Okowa, Dr. Okubor became one of his pawns, as a member of Uduaghan’s kitchen cabinet, he.encourage him to run, and he took the bait and went around telling those who cared to listen to his tales that he was Uduaghan plan B, the hidden joker.
He was the first to be weeded out of the list of governorship contestants by the Delta North PDP stakeholders, who stepped in to separate the shafts from the grain. But he refused to step down. We went into the primary, only to be humiliated. He scored three (3) votes, probably one from himself and two other persons he managed to smuggle their names into the delegate list.
Who is such a man, a politician without electoral value to insult the most distinguished Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, a global icon?
Those around him should advise him to mind his lane, to leave Senator Ned Munit Nwoko alone, and to devise other means to seek the.governor’s attention.
Frank Iroroh is the Coordinator of NMN Volunteer Corps ( The Nedites). You can reach the group via email at Nditevcorps@gmail.com
