2023: PDP Ticket North, Running Mate South-South, Will Okowa Endup as Political Maradona After Dribblling Gbagi, Others in Delta?

Editorial by Ezekiel Kagbala
The emergence of the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar as the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has sealed up the decision to retain the party’s presidential ticket in the North.
FocalPoint Reports also gathered that PDP is shopping for a running mate for Atiku with permutations of paring a serving governor from the South-South geopolitical zone with him.
Former Minister of (State) education, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi initiated a call for Okowa to contest for the presidential ticket and ends up with a call for vice president as least option for Okowa before the dribbling of Gbagi at the Government House.
Top shot from Atiku's camp revealed that all delegates from Delta State voted for Atiku, revealing further that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State could not be ruled out of Atiku's victory after working against Governor Nyesom Wike, of Rivers state.
The emergence of Atiku has completely changed the dynamics. The All Progressives Congress (APC) is at the crossroads, making leaders of the ruling party cautious of their next step in dealing with their 23 aspirants.
Knowing that Atiku may be depending on northern votes, former Governor of Abia State, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, recently said the emergence of Atiku has shut the doors on the southern contestants in the APC.
With the northern votes being targeted and planned for, it would be logical to conclude that a running mate with records of integrity from the South-South will square up votes from the region for the presidential candidate during the general election.
As for the opposition, if PDP dares to pick a serving governor who has been accused of not keeping his promises of providing a level-playing ground for all aspirants during the Delta State PDP primary election, it might spell doom for the party at its sensitive levels.
Political leaders, foundational members of PDP, and some guber aspirants are deeply saddened and failed to congratulate Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori who emerged with the Governor's support.
The primary election in Delta State was as if the State is practicing a democracy of intimidation, commercialization 'voodooism' bribery, corruption, and extortion. A dangerous form of democracy that best describes bad governance.
Like the Maradona, the State Governor dribbled one of Delta's finest aspirants, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi, a foundation member of the party out of the Governorship race with PDP, indeed Okowa proved himself as the Maradona of Delta Politics.
After the dribbling by Okowa, Gbagi also petitioned the national headquarters of the party, accusing the governor of bribing delegates to vote for his preferred candidate while making sure that he (an ad hoc delegate) was not allowed entry into a venue of the delegates’ meeting that was held in Asaba on May 21.
It was alleged that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa was out to destroy all the founding fathers of the party so that he would be the sole leader. Even more impressive is the fact that the ranks of senator James Manager, Chief Kenneth Gbagi, and others are insisting that nobody can retire them from politics even when Okowa's actions forced Gbagi out of the PDP race.
Like Nigeria’s former Military Head of State, General Ibrahim Babangida who was nicknamed Maradona, he dribbled Nigerians on the transition to civil rule programme. All his dribbling ended without producing a goal or result; It only produced confusion, which Nigerians insisted was not what they wanted.
General Abdulsalami Abubakar had to sort out the mess and return Nigeria to democracy in 1999.
Linking Babangida's narative to Okowa, there is fear that Governor Okowa is about to dribble Deltans and himself out of relevance. For disrespecting a former minister, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi is the height of misuse of power.
Despite Okowa's over use of God's name, he choose to be a promise
breaker, trying to be the political Maradona of Delta State and vice president at the-same time will mean an effort in futility.