2023: Clark Tackles Delta North Monarchs On Zoning

SOUTH-SOUTH leader and elder statesman, Senator Edwin Clark has tackled the Asagba of Asaba, HRM Obi (Prof) Chike Edozien, and other Delta North monarchs on their support for zoning the governorship to Delta Central Senatorial District.

Clark in an interview questioned the Delta North monarchs over the authenticity of their claim that it was the right of Delta Central to produce the next governor saying that there has been no zoning of the office in the history of the Fourth Republic.

He particularly noted the fact that Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan in 2014 backed Delta Central’s Edevbie when he dumped Tony Obuh he had earlier proposed as a successor.

Clark who is of Ijaw and Urhobo heritage spoke in an interview with Vanguard.

He said:

“Who sat down to zone governorship on senatorial basis in Delta state, nobody did. Zoning of the governorship office must be based on an agreement or negotiation where either a political party or the people sat down to say that this thing will go on rotation.

“This was not the case in 1999 when all those who contested, particularly the two – Chief James Ibori and Prof Sam Oyovbaire, only the late Philip Elueme from Ukwuani contested with them, so there was no question of who sat down to say the position was zoned to the Urhobos, there was none.

Noting the argument of the Delta North advocates in 2014, he said:

“And this has been the notion and feelings of people and I think that was what was behind the thinking of the Asagba of Asaba when they came to me in Abuja. If they knew that governorship was based on senatorial zone; that after Delta Central, then Delta South, then Delta North, why did they come to me? They should have only come to me in respect of a candidate

“If the emergence of Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan from Delta South in 2006 at Ogwashi Uku was based on senatorial rotation, then Ibori could not have had trouble with us. We could have said okay, it was zoned to Delta South senatorial district, but our position is that he imposed his cousin on us.

“If it was zoned on senatorial zone, there would not have been any point of anybody campaigning when he knows it is the turn of his senatorial district; if it was zoned on senatorial basis, why did Uduaghan, governor of the state, decide to support Edevbie, why did he not support another Delta northerner after he dropped Obuh.

“Ijaw is not campaigning for 2023 governorship that it is the turn of Delta South, we are saying that we too want to have it, that we produce most of the oil, we will like to have it, not on the condition of senatorial zone. What Ibori did was in abuse of his office as governor of the state and he paid dearly for it.

“So, it is not case of that it was zoned on senatorial basis, if it were that, there will be no struggle because each senatorial district will know when it is its turn.

“If it was zoned on senatorial basis, why did Uduaghan, governor of the state decide to support Edevbie? Why did he not support another Delta north senatorial zone man, Uduaghan was governor of Delta state between 2007 and 2015, the power was in his hands.

“If we agreed, let us give it to the North and he decided to take Obuh and we said no, he could have gone to take either Hon Ndudi Elumelu or Okowa or any other person. He did not, so if it was based on senatorial, why did he come to Urhobo, which is Delta Central.

“And if the Urhobos believe in senatorial zoning, why they came with ‘Uvwiamuge Declaration’, so it is wrong for the Asagba, he is very well educated man to contradict the Urhobos,” he said.

Source: Vanguard

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