The Government and people of Delta State are getting the stage ready to roll out the drums and spread out the colours tomorrow, Tuesday to celebrate 33 years of the creation of the State out of the now defunct Bendel State on August 27, 1991.
The pervading mood across the country is that of subdued patriotism, heightened pessimism evidenced in palpably permeating and pervasive hunger arising from worsened economic crises linked to the poor and uncouth policies of the Federal Government. The puzzling poser then remains, 33 years on, what indeed justifies the celebration of the anniversary of the creation of Delta State.
Thirty-three years down the line, Delta deserves to celebrate the manifest triumph of the sublime force of unity over the ascendancy of diversity and its vicissitudes. It remains rather instructive that 33 years after creation, Delta stands out as a convincing reference point of how the instrumentality of good, impactful governance can unify peoples of diverse social, ethno cultural backgrounds into a single, defined and functioning geo-political delineation. Today, we have Deltans as a people united by a collective spirit of resilience, showcasing to the rest of Nigeria how to raise the bar in good governance , sustainable development and infrastructure upgrade.
Nigeria’s experience in democracy has not been without operational hitches and asphyxiating systemic glitches but even in the midst of this obvious signs of a defective, if not dysfunctional federation, Delta State has exemplified stability in polity with a democratic understanding on how power should rotate amongst the major ethnic blocks domiciled in the three senatorial zones thus, epitomizing demonstrable excellence, etched in good governance and people oriented infrastructural development.
There’s therefore this feeling of inclusiveness among the various peoples and political interests in the State which has translated into an entrenched culture of political stability and peace building.
Delta has therefore proven that with visionary and development focused leadership, ethnic diversities can be harmonized towards achieving set developmental goals. Delta State is richly endowed with oil, non-oil, immense human capital resources and a sustainable peace which has resulted in a relatively rapid development marking every sector in the State’s drive for excellence and good governance.
The State has remained a sterling example of how a geo political delineation can positively impact on sustainable development and quality life attainment within the ambiance of global best practices. In the past 33years, Delta has remained a clear leader in Sports and human capital development, becoming a compelling tourism and investment destination for many in Nigeria and many more others from the diaspora. The journey of what is today a model State and trail blazer in diverse sectors of human development began on August 27, 1991.
Thirty-three years on, there’s no doubt that Delta has continued to present a credible and encouraging study of the great potentialities of state creation exercise in jump starting sustainable socioeconomic development among the people of benefiting areas in Nigeria. The State has turned out to be a convincing reference point of how state creation can facilitate even development within a defined geopolitical entity.
It has become clearly incontrovertible that today’s urban communities in Delta which include Asaba, Warri, Agbor, Sapele, Ughelli, Abraka and Bomadi may not have been hosting the same level of infrastructural development as is currently the case if Delta had not been created out of the now defunct Bendel State. It has also become self-evident that in the creation of Delta State, economic viability was given due consideration well and beyond political expediency arising from superfluous agitations.
Delta has recorded significant progression in successive responsive governments positively impacting on the landscape with transformational infrastructure. Beginning from the Lugardian North-South amalgamation of 1914 to Richard’s three regional structure of 1947, Nigeria has witnessed significant structural evolution and delineation, building up to the present 36 States and 774 Local Government Areas.
The creation of MidWest State on August 9, 1963 was historically significant as it turned out to be the only State to be so created through due adherence to constitutional provisions of procedures as against military fiat. In the emerging Nigerian federating circumstance where common wealth is aggregated at the center and shared along the line of federating components, the politics of sustained agitation for more States remains a keen and curious one indeed.
In 1967, the military administration headed by General Yakubu Gowon replaced the four regional structure with a 12 States structure. Nine years later, General Murtala Mohammed created additional seven States bringing the States structure to 19.
Eleven years after, Ibrahim Babangida created Akwa Ibom State from existing Cross River and Katsina out of old Kaduna State. Upon creation, August 27, 1991, military administrators were posted to pioneer the administration of the State. They include Luke Ochulor, Abdulkadir Shehu, Bassy Asuquo, Ibrahim Kefas, John Dungs and Walter Feghabo. The democratically elected governors include Felix Ibru (Jan 1992- Nov 1993). Chief James Onanefe Ibori was on the saddle as governor for eight years (May 29, 1999 – May 29,2007). He handed over the baton of leadership to Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan (May 29, 2007 – May 29, 2015). Sen. (Dr) Ifeanyi Okowa was sworn in as governor, May 29, 2015. He served the State as governor for eight years with remarkable transformational legacies in all the key sectors of Education, Health, Job creation, road infrastructure, Food production and social security.
The current Governor, Rt. Hon Sheriff Oborevwori came into office May, 29, 2023 on the developmental mantra of M-O-R-E Agenda with which his government is already delivering on more democracy dividends across the 25 Local Government Areas. 33 years on, there is a candid and credible consensus that Delta has remained a pace setting State in Sports, people oriented health policies, unprecedented landmark in educational development, Skill acquisition and employment generation policies of government.
There’s no doubt that the Finger of God State, 33 years on has many justifiable reasons to celebrate even as the people of the State reposition towards greater landmarks that will clearly set Delta out n the benchmarked development compass both in Nigeria and the West Coast of Africa. Happy Anniversary, Deltans.
