In this conversation with CHIBUIKE CHUKWU, Deacon Ken Pela, the Labour Party’s candidate for governor of Delta State in the general election of 2023, discusses the 2027 general elections and how the populace and the ruling class would be at odds. Among other things, Pela discusses his intention to run again in 2027, how Delta has fallen short of being one of Nigeria’s highest-earning states, the ongoing criticism of Peter Obi, and his wish to make up for the wrongs of so many years of Delta governance. Excerpts:
Why, in your opinion, is Delta State, which has vast resources, performing poorly when, as you stated, it ought to have been competing with organizations such as Dubai?
To elaborate, if you have a leader, when there is nothing, something fills the void because nature detests emptiness. So, when you then have a circumstance where there’s money, but you don’t know what to do with it, then, what happens is that you waste the money. But if you find yourself in a position where you have ideas and a vision, you will genuinely be searching for funding to support those ideas and goals. That’s the issue, then. Based on my findings, let’s assume that Delta was established in 1991. It was governed by the military. Therefore, it made sense when Delta drifted between 1991 and 1999. Except for the brief tenure of Felix Ibru’s administration, the military and the majority of the administrations had no stake in the outcome. What if they were visionary when they were a fledgling state? What if they had formed a group or a committee? Yes, there is a nation with deserts, oil, and everything else. What are they doing? Because, as I mentioned earlier, Dubai has already begun to show symptoms of vision by 1999. By 1999, they had started to transform that desert into a lovely location, and things only grew better with time. They made investments in the economy as a whole, including airports. The money was not wasted. We wouldn’t be where we are now if Delta had not done enough research on Dubai. Their actions resulted in financial waste and divergent paths. The long and short of it is that. inadequate leadership with vision.
However, do you not believe that all of these may have been explained by certain factors? As you point out, Delta is unable to completely manage the oil in its backyard.
Different investments may have been made with the revenue resources that came to Delta. That’s the thing I mean. Let’s go ahead 25 years. Take a look at Abia State. There have been multiple governors of Abia State. When the previous governors were in power, Aba was abandoned. Umuahia had no intention of leaving. Today, however, we have visionary leadership in the same state. See how things have changed in just two years. The difference is not up to four years.
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You ran for governor of Delta in 2023 under the Labour Party, and many Nigerians still think that the 2023 election was heavily rigged. A large number of Nigerians think that the most recent election was not free and fair in every way. As you prepare to enter the ring once more, what gives you the assurance that the procedure has changed to ensure a total break from the 2023 exercise?
I was in Benin for Olumide Apata’s election last October. I had repeatedly mobilized. I had spent more than three, four, or five months in and out of Edo State, but in the weeks preceding that gubernatorial election, I was there. As the head of the Labour Party’s governorship candidates forum, I actually spent three weeks in a row organizing my colleagues. 2023–2025. In order to assist give the campaign a national flavor, I also rallied all of my colleagues both inside and outside of Edo State. We then discovered that voters were already selling their votes for 5,000, 20,000, and 40,000 on election day. I was a little disheartened. When I got to the situation room at 9 p.m., I was even more disheartened since it was clear that Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was in the lead with roughly 92,000 votes, and at that point, 92% of the results were out, leaving only 8%. Unexpectedly, the All Progressives Congress (APC) was said to have won by a significant margin by the next morning. In actuality, my wife was already somewhat uninterested that evening before the results were announced the following morning. When my wife was in the United States, she was immediately asking, “Are you sure you want to do this thing, honey?” Do you want to keep doing this? Your money is being wasted. Of all, all these running around I’m doing are their inheritance because I spend personal time and money. In other words, I spend what the family ought to spend. Now that I’m squandering away what they ought to be living on, she wasn’t asking me. She wanted me to be at peace with myself. She wanted to know because she was concerned about me. She knew I believed in it, therefore she cared about my emotional and mental well while doing this. I kept doing this and running the chance of their continuing to do what they will do, which disturbed her. That’s just what I was meant to do. I was therefore really desperate. Olumide and I attended Thanksgiving church the following morning. And I was at ease that Thanksgiving. Where had the calm gone? I was reminded in the spirit of what I always say, and that’s how it came about. Normally, I would say that good cannot always triumph against evil. Man has been given this earth by God. However, when God gave man this earth, the devil descended from heaven and continued to struggle for dominance of this globe. And if man doesn’t do what he should, he will continue to win. Therefore, the devil will prevail if some of us choose not to stand. On the other hand, God has an opportunity to redeem this earth if some of us oppose him. Now, I think—I always say this—that my principal’s (Peter Obi’s) so-called engagement in Nigerian politics is not typical. It’s divine, I think. I think it’s the solution to prayer. Having lived in this nation long enough, we are aware that it is abnormal for people to spend their own money to support a politician. Is it true or not? It is customary for politicians to donate funds to their constituents. For the first time, citizens started spending money on political campaigns in 2023. And you and I are aware that the four individuals tweeting in the room, who claimed they wouldn’t receive a million votes, defeated them all without any kind of organization, but they did what they did, and Nigeria has been worse ever since. The land has become more hungry ever since. For 2027, your query is what makes me feel things will be different. By 2027, it will be the people against the government, I must declare. Keep a close eye on the condition in the country because 2023 will be a child’s paradise compared to 2027. Returning to your initial query, what makes me believe? My experience and the lessons I learned to stay resolute must be the source of it. In my opinion, people will accept things as they are in 2027. By the time you read what I have planned, you will also recognize that Delta should be a citizen-driven movement. I can’t accomplish it alone; Deltans must be involved. Therefore, it is my responsibility to demonstrate to Deltans their shortcomings and to motivate them with the potential for reclaiming Delta.
The ruling party, especially the governors of the All Progressives Congress, has allegedly been attacking Peter Obi. First, Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia cautioned him against entering his state without permission. It was Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo recently. What, in your opinion, makes him their target in all of these?
It is, for want of a better term, frustration. I’ll address this question from two angles. First of all, have you previously witnessed politicking during the middle of a term? No. This is the first time it has ever begun. It has never been this way before, I mean politicking for the next election halfway through a government. This is a result of their disbelief at what transpired in 2013. They assumed, as many politicians do, that the man would disappear. The majority of politicians used to do that, you know—a man would leave and start campaigning once more in the run-up to the election. Although he may not be everywhere, Peter Obi has been highly visible, involved, and active. He has been inspiring and fostering hope. Their own popularity has been declining while that has been going on. Every day they fail. The economy is getting worse, and there is more hunger. The only thing they can do in their aggravation is to start politicking, which forces governors to defect to the APC and incites others. Peter Obi is the individual who stands out and keeps standing out during that process. That is the top priority. Second, the chairman of the APC in Edo State. He claimed to despise Peter Obi, and as soon as he made that thoughtless remark, they looked into his background and discovered that he was, in fact, a suspected fraudster. Naturally, when you look at the scenario, you see that Nigeria is stratifying, with people with a history of bad behavior and particular types of character coming together around various coalitions, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC). At that point, I start to have concerns about the coalition because, once more, we are meant to have another group in the opposition that is purportedly uniting around the ADC. However, there is one man who sticks out in that second group that is assembling around the ADC. He also constantly talking about dismantling the criminal justice system. This is what he says repeatedly. In actuality, everyone with a criminal mindset knows that they would be in trouble if that individual were to take office. This is especially true once he claims to sanitize the system. About twenty years ago, I ran for the position of chairman of the local government. They wouldn’t give it to me, even though I won the primary. I then made an effort to use the system. At that time, I was elected to the National Institute of Sports’ council and served as its interim chairman. I was the chairman of Delta Building Society at the time, and we changed its name to Delta Trust Mortgage Finance. I was a student at Burutu’s Delta School of Marine Technology at the time. I concluded from that experience and trip that there are only 37 political posts worth running for if your goal is to make a difference. You are either the president or the governor among them. Peter Obi is therefore aiming to surpass them. He will therefore have the executive authority to make changes there. The fact is, if you can find someone who has that kind of mentality and thinking to lead the nation, you can alter it in that way, especially if he has the support of the people. You have the power to transform this nation so that anyone who follows him won’t dare to do anything else than improve the current situation. Therefore, it is evident that he will be hated by people who have a criminal mindset, criminal intentions, and criminal political aspirations.
Many Obidients and other supporters of Peter Obi’s philosophy have stated that he ought to quit the coalition if the ADC did not provide him the presidential ticket. Don’t you think that would portray him as erratic and desperate if that were to occur?
Peter Obi has consistently stated that he would not join a coalition in order to gain power. He will be part of a coalition for the good of the Nigerian people. If you’re honest with yourself, is there anyone else in this country right now who has the power to change things, particularly among them? Is there anyone else in politics today who cares more about the welfare of the people and wants to make positive changes in Nigeria than he does, both inside and outside the coalition? Peter Obi has consistently been reliable.
What is going on within the Labour Party? Has Peter Obi indeed left the Labour Party, and are you still a member?
We remain members of the Labour Party. The Labour Party still has Peter Obi. Recently, I accompanied him to the flag-off of the Labour Party’s campaign for the Anambra State governorship. Thus, he remains a member of the Labour Party. They are in a coalition, though. Although we are in coalition discussions for 2027, we are part of the Labour Party.
How do you assess the government of Sheriff Oborevwori in your state, two years down the line given that they say he has been consistent with infrastructure?
My midterm report contains all of the information I would have wanted to include. My brother and a friend are the governor. But creating a state is broader than just infrastructure. What is the goal of spending and what is the purpose of infrastructure? There is a lot of razzmatazz, and they will point out three new flyovers with exorbitant prices. There are two, three, and five flyovers in Warri. I think that they make traveling easier. Additionally, I’ve heard that Ughelli and another person were recently awarded. The inflated value of such flyovers cannot be greater than N200 billion. They have already done two years and the three in Warri, I guess the anticipated cost will be about N70 billion. N70 billion is only enough for one and a half months. That is all they have to show for the two years that have passed and the upcoming third year, during which the state has generated trillions of dollars in revenue. Delta State in two years earned approximately a billion naira allocations; we are not talking of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR). Only slightly more than $1 billion was made by the five South East states, meaning that Delta State alone makes nearly as much as the five states combined. Next, examine leadership in action. The 2025 budgets of Abia and Delta are completely different. They are not together. Sheriff, as I mentioned, is my brother, okay? My midterm report already has everything I want to say.
