Ogburu was factional, not Delta APC’s candidate – Eneduwa George

In what appears like self appraisal, a frontline chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Delta State, one of the states the party performed abysmally poorly against all expectations considering the caliber of people in its fold the caliber of Mr. Austine Eneduwa-George, has said that the party lost because it had no candidate and not that it lost to a superior party or opponent.

Eneduwa-George who in 2045 contested to represent the good people of Aniocha South State Consistency at the state House of Assembly also said that the decision to zone the governorship position to Delta Central as against the earlier resolution to allow Delta North complete its two terms in the spirit of equity was another reason the party lost.
With a house divided against itself, Eneduwa-George reasoned that there was no way the party would have triumphed at the March 16, 2019 elections.

In this online interview conducted with him in far away New Zealand, where is holidaying, he also spoke on other pressing issues.

Against all expectations that APC, your party, will give Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) a bloody nose in Delta State, however, the reverse became the case. What, from your experience, really happened?

The whole problem started when the national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, recognised and swore in prophet Jones Erhua as the party’s state chairman when already Chief John Odigie-Oyegun had already swore in Cyril Ogodo as the state party chairman before leaving office. Delta was now saddled with two state chairmen.
Next was the issue of zoning. The plan was that we should present a candidate from Delta North who would serve one term so as to complete the north’s eight years to then allow central to produce the next governor in the spirit of rotation. But alas! There was Ogboru who had just come in from the Labour Party. Unfortunately, the national chairman chose to recognize a faction and its governorship candidate. From then on it became a case of “to your tent, oh Israel”. So basically, there was no formidable front to prosecute the election to satisfactory delivery

Some of us really thought that with the likes of Laurette Onochie, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, Professor Pat Utomi, Hon. Victor Ochei and many others, that it will a free entry for Ogboru/APC to Govt House Asaba?

All those you’ve mentioned including Engr Enuha who is the father of the party in the state and myself, are those that were disenfranchised by the national chairman’s decision to recognize Ogboru. Basically Ogboru was not the state party’s candidate but a factional candidate.

Do you really think that Okowa has done well, especially in Aniocha South Local Government Area where you hail from, to deserve re-election with such a wide margin?

Okowa has been a total disappointment to us in Delta North. He’s fixing his hometown with infrastructures as if Agbor is the state he was elected to serve, teachers and civil servants are owed salaries for months, WAEC exams that has always been free, he abolished that and several anomalies. Hence the reason why we thought it best to try another northerner this time from the progressive party. We had a chance but the issue of factions which wasn’t addressed by the national on time scuttled our chances and not that Okowa is necessarily popular

Your town, Ogwashi Uku, which is the HQ of Aniocha Local Government Area, reputed to be the oldest local government in Nigeria, is experiencing a turn around in the area of internal road rehabilitation by the state government; do you think this is not a case of being at the right place too late?

What turn around are you talking about? What roads? The Ishekpe road that was constructed at the last quarter of last year is now worse than it was initially. The only viable roads so far that have been constructed were all NDDC projects. Okowa has been an absolute embarrassment to Delta Northerners. The 16km Adonte/Ogwashi Uku Road, which I expanded and graded from my own pocket in 2015 is begging to be tarred. I would have thought my effort would encourage the government to take action. I have lobbied the government in all corners to tar the road but to no avail. Yet a whole LGA would be considered for 200 metres road construction by the Okowa government. It is a shame because the people expected a great transformation since having a Delta Northerner as governor

Having run for a house of assembly seat in 2015 with a good impression, do you not think that your party made a mistake by presenting others who are not really well known for state house of assembly?

Look, without St. Paul there are many churches. I decided not to run when I saw the way the tide was flowing. In a situation, when you have two state chairmen, multiple factions and at the end two congresses were held and each congress produced various officers and at the end there were two primaries with candidates emerging from both. How on earth can a party in that kind of dilemma win an election? The saddest part is the non carefree role the national body played in the whole debacle. The electorate was left confused as to which faction is authentic or not and party members loyalty was watered down

There is no doubt that your local government is the least developed especially in terms of roads and other good things of life that government ought to provide. Towns like Adonte, Ukwu Oba, Egbudu Aka, Ashama et al, have no good roads. The only general hospital in the area in Isheagwu, apart from St. Mary Hospital, Ogwashi Uku is ran down not to talk of schools. As a politician of repute, what are you doing about it?

I’ve enumerated some of these already in your fourth question. This is why I have always been convinced the PDP isn’t a progressive nor people oriented party but a party of ‘chop I chop.’ I joined partisan politics as part of my effort to bring about the change we seek. When it dawned on me that we might need to wrestle power off their hands, I presented myself to run for office. That has now put me in a position to challenge government activities as an opposition member and hope we can get the government of the day to sit up.

How has your stay and that of people like Engr. Enuha, Gideon Nwaomu, laurette Onochie, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu and others benefited Anioma nation as an ethnic nationality?
The likes of Engr Enuha, Ibe Kachukwu, my sister, Loretta Onochie, Barr Nwanokwai, Chiedu Onwadiamu ,Victor Ochei, Prof Pat Utomi and a host of others have committed their time, resources and talents into the same struggle and I know once the state’s party hierarchy issue is sorted and we are a unified party in the state again, surely, I assure you, we will be taking over to rescue Delta State from its shackles and bring the desired development to the entire state.

And on a final note, what is your take on this little girl that was turned back from school because she did not pay exam fess and the dilapidated state of the school?

The matter is neither here nor there. Is the school a free tuition school? Are we not aware teachers are owed salaries from months unending? Does the girl have parents, is the school in a position to insist on school fees. Bros, the issue is endless. The basic thing is that haven lived in the Western world for as long as I have, it annoys me when I observe that development is not spread which is what the Western and developed world do, they spread development to the extent that the man in the remote area has no desire to go to the city. If there is ShopRite in Asaba, one should also be located in Ubulu Uku. It will create commerce and urbanisation. So when I heard there’s a short cut from Ogwashi to Adonte. I told my campaign director general that we should suspend politics for now as this is my opportunity as a candidate to do that, otherwise, should I attempt it at any other period, people might attach spurious meaning to my purpose. Moreso, it is my desire to still lobby for the construction of that road which I promise you shall happen.

I have a blue print already but unfortunately most of my leaders don’t see things as I see it and they are still doing politics the PDP way. How can you copy PDP style of politics and expect to beat them at their game. That’s why my campaign was of different connotations and left many confused as to the gimmick and strategy that even people who don’t like APC followed because of me