By Julius Oweh
Last Saturday, the ruling party in Delta State, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP held a mega rally to reaffirm the supremacy of the party and to receive defectors from the APC and APGA. At the entrance of the venue, the Delta State University of Science and Technology, Ozoro, one was greeted with banners of all stripes, the outstanding was that of Atiku Abubakar, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, Speaker Sheriff Oborevwori and Sir Monday Onyeme as the rescue team. Moving from the school gate to the stadium was hampered by human and vehicular movement. There were thousands and thousands of people. When this reporter arrived at 9.30 am in the stadium, the place was already agog with human and political activities. People and groups were dancing with banners of their favourite candidates. Amidst the blaring of music, the supporters of Speaker Oborevwori outnumbered those of Olorogun David Edevbie. All groups danced their hearts out to please their principals.
Outside the stadium was a different kettle of fish. Food and drinks vendors set up their stands and they had willing buyers. Those selling the mementoes of the PDP also smiled to the banks. The rally peaked up the commercial activities of Ozoro, the headquarters of Isoko North Local government area. In fact Ozoro stood still for the PDP and goes to confirm the popularity of the party in the state. Music was booming out and the various groups also provided their own music, there was a traditional African religion masquerade invoking the spirits of the ancestors to make sure that the rally was peaceful. The women as usual were bedecked like peacocks and the women outnumber the men. Visible was the golden women for Olorogun Edevbie. The staffs of the Delta State House of Assembly were also there to support the political ambitions of the speaker of the state assembly. All the twenty five local government areas were fully represented. When Sheriff Oborevwori arrived at 11.20am, the atmosphere was charged and tension soaked. He arrived at the state box and the dignitaries already there stood up and gave the man , his compliments. The song PDP carry me dey go rent the air and there was a lot of dancing and happiness was etched on the faces of the party faithful. The chairman of the party arrived at 11.48 am.
The stadium became so electrified with the arrival of the state governor and the PDP vice presidential candidate at 12.01pm and the music of Atiku is a goal, Okowa is a goal was on the lips of the PDP faithful. The governor and his entourage moved round the stadium acknowledging the cheers from party members. The governor was all smiles and eventually entered the state box and the activities of the day started proper with the rendition of the national anthem at 12.40pm.
Rev Godspower Agbuduta was called upon to say the opening prayer. Agbuduta started with praise and worship song titled Jesus doo and it moved the hearts of many people in the stadium. Agbuduta supplicated for peace in Delta State and that the peace building efforts of Okowa administration should continue with blessings from the heavens. The PDP chairman for Delta south senatorial Julius Edema welcome the leadership of the party and members to the mega rally, saying that PDP remains one united family in the state and have the structures on the ground. He also argued that majority of Deltans were happy with the performances of Governor Okowa and that PDP will continue to win elections in the state.
As chairman of the party, Barrister Kingsley Esiso approached the public dais, the song God of miracle welcome him and the chairman also displayed some dance steps. Esiso said the mega rally was to celebrate the party. He went on memory lane, saying that the PDP conducted a credible governorship primary and a candidate emerged and that the party was ready to defend the outcome of that primary. He said that the party was on the course of winning the next election. He said that PDP would wait for the outcome of the court judgment, adding that God was not asleep. Esiso failed to name the governorship candidate for the case was already in court.
The various defectors from APC and APGA spoke but the highlight of that event was the speech of a political activist and radical, Barrister Fred Obe. He broke into a song gentle man no dey ooo and the crowd went wild. He also composed a song for Nigeria to survive, PDP must rule. That song stole the heart of the governor as he asked Obe to sing the song over and over again. Both the governor and party chairman danced their hearts out with the song and all the other PDP faithful in the stadium did the same. The stadium entered a pin drop silence as Obe used his oratorical skills to explain why he left the APC for the PDP. He formally tendered apology to Nigerians for entering the APC vehicle which he described as fraudulent carrying Nigerians to misery, inflation and insecurity. That APC were a group of power mongers who scammed Nigerians and promised what they cannot do. He described Okowa as a man of undiluted grace, a man of the people. He lamented the pains APC brought on the nation and that people can no longer travel, describing the APC as a patient in the intensive care unit of hospital, waiting to die.
At 1.15pm, Okowa mounted the rostrum and told the PDP faithful that there was no course for alarm and that God was on their side. Said Okowa :I heard some people saying that PDP is dying in Delta State and I wonder why they are deceiving themselves. We are not boasting but on the day of election, our people will come out and vote and in the next election we are going to win all available seats – from the assembly to the presidential. In 2019 they got two local government areas but in 2023, we will win the entire 25 local government areas. Whatever is going on is a normal democratic process, so, there is nothing to worry about, no cause for alarm and no cause to fear.
At 1.25pm, he thanked the PDP faithful and that signaled the close of the event with the song PDP carry me dey go, PDP carry me dey go. For more than two hours, the cars and buses in the campus could not get out. There was traffic lock down. Even outside the school gate, there was a massive traffic holdup in Ozoro from the university gate to the Owhologbo junction. The message was clear, PDP made Ozoro to stand still for hours.
