The fight over who clinches the flabby seat of the chairman of Warri North council in this year’s Delta state LGA’s election may have been underestimated. There are signs that the task of picking flag bearers from the PDP and APC, the two major political parties in the council area was becoming increasingly difficult given the fragmentation of the parties’ leadership along self and individual interests. While the chore of picking these candidates for the election has been described by party faithful as extra ordinarily loud and tumultuous among the leadership of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), APC instrumentality at the Warri North assigned with the same task was said be undergoing a mission to rescue a party that has been waist deep in the miasma of accusations and counter accusations of betrayal. Among any other thing, APC Warri North is saddled with the task of ensuring that the interest and victory of the party, which was unfortunately mortgaged in two previous LGA elections in Warri North, was prevented.
At as press time, there are three serious candidates who had indicated interest to contest the 2019 LGA election on the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, (PDP). They are Hon. Solomon Mikie. Hon. Mikie has a robust political experience at the grassroot level. He has served at various political capacities at the Council level. A feat that earned him a seat at the legislative arm as a councilor in Hon. Edward Olatilewa’s administration. He is presently a legislative aid to Hon. Michael Diden who is representing the Warri North Constituency in the Delta state House of Assembly. In spite of his intimidating political profile, Hon. Mikie may have to weather a political Tsunami if he must emerge victorious at the poll. He is from Koko, and Koko has a single ward with less than 3,000 registered voters. Nonetheless, pundits are of the views that the fact that Hon. Mikie who was riding on the back of Hon. Diden might have got the coast cleared for former.
Another strong contender for the Warri North chairman’s seat on the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) is Hon. Happy Mene whose relationship with the Warri North political overlord, Hon. Michael Diden was described to have been on the cliff for some time now. Hon. Mene has been tipped for the party’s ticket because it is believed and forecasted that the age long Warri North political strategy would work for him. Hon. Mene is from the Benin river which has 80% of the Warri North registered voters. In addition, all the political bigwigs in the council area are from the Benin River, and the expectation has been that they would all throw their weight behind Hon. Mene. Prominent among such leaders, is Hon. Godwin Ebosa who was an ex chairman of the council area and presently an egghead of DESOPADEC. Hon. Ebosa who is also from the Benin River has a contagious influence in Warri North, and money to project and sponsor even a political Lilliputian to victory in any election in Delta state.
Only a few had attached seriousness to Hon. Francis Maku Eyituoyo’s interest to contest the LGA poll. Yet, many believed that it would amount to a political suicide to underestimate the chances of an incumbent chairman. Hon. Eyituoyo, like most incumbent chairmen in Delta state has not fared very well in the administration and dispensation of the meager funds disbursed to the council. Salary arrears were being owed council workers, no meaningful projects were executed, and several other shortcomings, which had dwindled the profile of these chairmen. What looked like the last odium which has smeared the political profiles of these incumbent chairmen was negotiating away the welfare of council staff when the former entered into an agreement with the state government in return for a brand new Calmary 2015 car to starch away the Paris refunds meant to pay up salary arrears owed civil servants. For fear of the wraths of council staff, most of these council chairmen who had since collected ther cars were afraid to drive in the car to their respective council secretariats. Hon. Maku is one such chairman who had hidden his new betrayal car far from public glare. In spite of all these hiccups, Hon. Maku was said to have stubbornly jettisoned all reasons to throw his hat into the ring to contest a second term in office as the chairman of the council area. Another factor that might work against Hon. Francis is the fact that since the creation of the council area in 1991, no executive or elected chairman had reigned in two separate or two consecutive terms.
Apparently, there has been no reflection of APC’s leadership hegemony at the center on the Warri North Local Government. In fact, the political history of Warri North is replete with PDP dominance. However, what looked like an attempt to break the jinx of PDP supremacy at the council level was frustrated twice by the APC themselves. Although unconfirmed, it was reported that victories at two previous elections at the Warri council were traded away by the Warri North leadership of APC. Views are that it will be easier for a camel to pass through an eye of a needle than for an APC candidate to win the Warri North chairmanship seat. The reason why this has been so, was because the Warri North APC leadership has been complacent during and after elections at the council level. The last Warri North LGA election experienced unprecedented accusation and counter accusation of collecting bribe money from the PDP to drop their election petition at the LGA Election Tribunal. A development said to be causing apathy among party leadership at the council’s level. With a house divided against itself, nothing short of yet another defeat may be staring APC Warri North in the face. The uneasiness at the party leadership might be responsible for the reason why the party has not presented a candidate for the election.
