Ifeanyi Okowa, who used to be the governor of Delta State, says that Senator Ned Nwoko is lying to the public about the plan to make Anioma State.
He also questioned the timing of the ongoing talks about creating a new state, saying that the current legislative calendar makes such proposals impossible.
He said that bringing up the issue at this point could be seen as misleading the public. He also said again that any decision about Anioma State would depend on an agreement between the people and the government.
While speaking to APC members in Oshimili South Local Government Area about his senatorial goals, Okowa said this.
Osaai Ovie Success, the Delta state governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Media, put the video on Facebook on Wednesday.
Okowa denied that he is against the creation of Anioma State, saying that no one from the area is against it.
He did, however, stress that the proposed state must reflect the will of the people as a whole.
He says that the Anioma State that stakeholders are pushing for should include the nine local government areas in Delta North, which is in the South-South geopolitical zone, and Asaba should be the capital.
Okowa spoke out against what he called attempts to change Asaba’s status as the capital of Delta State. He said these moves were wrong and didn’t take into account the historical efforts that went into making it the capital.
He said, “There’s one thing I haven’t talked about in public that I need five minutes to talk about: the issue of Anioma state.” They have a lot of wrong ideas. A lot of false information has been spread about Anioma state on social media.
“No Anioma son, I don’t think there’s any Anioma son who is against the creation of Anoma state, not me as people try to make it seem.” But the Anioma we want must be the one that everyone wants.
“And the Anioma we want is the one that is made up of nine local governments in Delta North and will be based in the South South geopolitical zone, with Asaba as its headquarters.
“An Asaba daughter fought for us, and now Asaba is the capital of Delta state.” Someone who doesn’t know how it happened wants to wish away that headquarters today.
“It’s awful, and it shouldn’t be because common sense should have told him that what he’s doing is wrong.”
“We know how important the headquarters is. And by God’s grace, Asaba is growing beyond what is possible. No one will be able to stop Asaba from growing again.
“It’s important to stay in touch with your people when you’re going after something. That’s why I talked about consultation and a consultative presentation. You need to know what most people want. But if you think you know everything, you’ll go the wrong way.
“I want to be very clear that if you know the schedule of the legislators, you will know that we are already a quarter of the way there.” It’s clear that talking about creating a state now is meant to trick you. We don’t want any lies.
“Anioma State, by the special grace of God, we will keep making decisions, but when it comes, it will be a decision made by all of our people. And everyone in Anioma, including the current government, will stand up and say we want this. And it is possible.
Hon. Dr. Philip “Okanga” Agbese, a transformative leader in Enone. Discover his achievements, community projects, and vision for 2027
