Groups Support Ochei for Delta 2015 Governorship

Fri, Sep 12, 2014
By publisher
6 MIN READ

Politics

Many groups spring up to support the 2015 governorship aspiration of Victor Ochei, former speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly

By Anayo Ezugwu  |  Sep. 22, 2014 @ 01:00 GMT  |

THE governorship ambition of Victor Ochei, former Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly’s governorship, is gathering momentum. Many groups are springing up to support his bid for the number one position in Delta State. The latest group to join is the Victor Ochei Revolution 2015. Dakpos Damijo, its coordinator, said the group has endorsed and declared support for Ochei’s gubernatorial ambition because of his pragmatic and result-oriented approach to administration.

According to him, the group’s resolve to rally support for Ochei stemmed from the imperativeness of backing a candidate  whose antecedents are replete with outstanding and extra-ordinary qualities, which had  manifested in the string of achievements the Delta State House of Assembly recorded during Ochei’s leadership. Dakpos further revealed that the body which comprises members of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, has presence in the 25 local government areas of the state,

Speaking also at the ceremony, Liege- Lord Keston Okoro, member of the Delta State House of Assembly, said his association with Ochei in the legislature informed his unflinching support for the group’s resolution to back Ochei. He described him as a prolific, forthright, altruistic, innovative philanthropist and, above all, a dye-in-the wool Deltan, great patriot, whose belief in a productive and egalitarian society has no match. These qualities, he said, compliment the vision and mission of the organisation, which propagates the core principle of reach-out, educate and transform the society.

Ochei, in his response, expressed his profound gratitude to members of the body for the confidence they reposed in him. He assured them of his readiness to identify with the group’s lofty and sublime objectives, and vowed to pick up the gauntlet in contributing his quota to the development of the state through the actualisation of his gubernatorial ambition.

The group is not the only one that has endorsed Ochei for governor in 2015. On Wednesday August 27, 2013, Ijaw group under the aegis of Ijaw Action Group for Change, IAGC, said it would support Delta north senatorial district for the governorship race in 2015 only if it presents Ochei as a consensus candidate. Lucky Oweimieotu, spokesman of the group, said the IAGC has dedicated members who other gubernatorial aspirants in the state could not cajole with money.

Oweinieotu described Ochei as a successful leader in business, politics and a man with impeccable character, with strong finesse for success. According to him, Ochei has the competence and leadership quality to build on the legacy of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan should he become governor of Delta State in 2015. “Many of them campaigning now will drop out before the real business but we know that Victor Ochei will be in the race to the end. That is why he remains the best to us, the Ijaws, because he has shown to us that the young have more vigour than the old who have become a spent force. As a speaker, he has removed ‘the toothless bulldog’ slogan that used to be the name of the State House of Assembly to a vibrant one with the passage of positive bills, including the recent anti-kidnapping bill,” he said.

Other groups that have endorsed Ochei’s governorship ambition are the Delta Professionals in the Diaspora and Urhobo group under the aegis of Delta Central Progressive Forum. The groups described Ochei as a vibrant lawmaker who would take Delta state to the next level if voted into power. They commended members of all the groups campaigning for Ochei, saying “they are made up of capable Deltans who are not looking for an avenue to extort money from aspirants.”

Ochei is a consummate philanthropist with bias for human capital development as a veritable tool for societal progress. He borrowed this virtue from his late father who strongly believed that education was the only legacy worth bequeathing. A renowned sports fan and sponsor, Ochei is also acknowledged as a reputable community leader. He is a patron of the highly successful Nigerian Wheelchair Basketball Federation and chairman, Delta State Wrestling Association.

By his devotion to the Nigerian Wheelchair Basketball Federation, he has revolutionised sports for the physically-challenged and given them a positive new sense of belonging. He has equally sponsored, at great personal expense, many tournaments involving the physically-challenged in the country. As a lawmaker in the Delta State House of Assembly, Ochei has earned the support and adoration of his constituents as manifested in his successful election, as the representative of the Aniocha North Constituency in the Delta State House of Assembly, for three consecutive terms.

In community service, Ochei is a major donor to the Rotary International and a strong member of the De Saints International Club, a non-governmental organisation, NGO, with a passion for the less privileged. He believes that it is when people are sufficiently empowered, that they can contribute positively to the development of the society. His spirit of public service also culminated in his founding of the Victor Ochei Foundation, an NGO, which provides succour to the people in Aniocha North Constituency through affordable transportation, small and medium scale investments and a commitment to affordable education. This has led to the institution of various scholarship schemes to cater for brilliant but indigent students at primary, secondary and tertiary levels.

Ochei is a renowned politician of integrity and tenacity of purpose. He began his political career in 2003, where he emerged as the representative of Aniocha North Constituency in the Delta State House of Assembly and later, deputy minority leader of the State House on the platform of the United Nigerian People’s Party, UNPP, a position he held until 2006. In his second bid for elective office, he opted for the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, and got re-elected on the party’s platform. He became chairman of the House Committee on Education till the end of the fourth Assembly of the Delta State legislature. He contested in the 2011 general elections and was re-elected into the State legislature for a third term. He was elected by his colleagues as Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly.

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