Human rights activist, Mr. Festus Keyamo, has indicated his interest to
vie for the governorship of Delta State with a promise to take Deltans
out of what he called the present state of underdevelopment. Speaking at
his country home in Effurun-Warri, during the maiden meeting of Delta
Forces United (a platform he is using to mobilise all progressive
Deltans), Keyamo declared that time had come for the citizens to be
liberated from the dynasty of thieves that has been created over the
years in the state.
The fiery lawyer who did not mince words in
condemning what he regarded as politics of cronyism, ethnicity,
prebendalism and underdevelopment in the state, pointed out that there
had not been much to show for the 14 years of the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) in the state. He explained that what the state had been
saddled with was a legacy of primitive accumulation and godfatherism,
while the masses continue to live in abject poverty with little
infrastructural development of the state. Keyamo wondered why a few who
have continued to marginalise majority of Deltans would arrogate the
power and right to decide who succeeds them instead of allowing the
people’s will to prevail. Revealing his vision to over 200 members of
the Delta Forces United, who attended the meeting from the various local
government areas of the state, the activist who has vowed to live the
rest of his life for the betterment of the state, noted that Deltans
over time have been held hostage by members of a cabal, who would not
see any other candidate as having the right qualities to govern.
According to him, the cabal has done much to promote mediocrity by not
allowing internal democracy to reign. Priority in his vision (among
other things) he said would therefore be the enthronement of democratic
governance and provision of employment for the jobless Deltans even as
he promised to take agriculture to a level where it can generate revenue
like oil. Though Keyamo has not yet decided on which political party
platform he would run for the election, yet he has ruled out the
possibility of joining the PDP as he did not see anything good in the
party particularly in the state. From the expression of participants at
the meeting, it was quite evident that many Deltans were already tired
of the present state of affairs in the State and would be ready for a
positive change being promised by Keyamo. Each of the speakers, a good
number of who travelled from Lagos, Asaba, Ughelli, the creeks of Delta
State and other places to attend the meeting expressed high degree of
optimism and confidence in the ability of Keyamo to lead the struggle
against politics of despoliation, greed, intimidation, corruption and
under-development in the state. With Keyamo’s vow to pursue the
philosophy of returning power to the people (by allowing the masses to
choose who would govern the state) like the case of Edo State, every
participant agreed to take the message back to the grassroots with a
view to erecting a structure that would facilitate the actualisation of
his ambition come 2015. This, many participants said, dated back to
1999, when Chief James Ibori, emerged as governor and after eight years,
handed over to his cousin; Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, who continued in the
same tradition which had favoured only a few in their clique.
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