At a press conference in Asaba on Thursday, Omo-Agege accused the state governor, Ifeanyi Okowa of “swallowing” over N2.8 trillion received in seven years to develop the state.
Delta state government on Thursday said the state governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress and deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege is a ‘mace thief’ not fit to govern the people of the state.
At a press conference in Asaba on Thursday, Omo-Agege accused the state governor, Ifeanyi Okowa of “swallowing” over N2.8 trillion received in seven years to develop the state.
He said "monies meant for the development of the state are now being channelled to fund the ill-fated ambition of Governor Okowa to become Vice-President of Nigeria in 2023 by every means”.
Omo-Agege, the senator representing Delta Central in the National Assembly, also described Okowa’s administration as a failure.
He said, "Just go around the state. The poverty and frustration inflicted by this government on Deltans over the years are palpable and scary. Insecurity, low-quality projects, lack of vision to revive the economy of the state, misplaced priorities in governance, corruption, nepotism, government waste, incompetence, and lack of accountability are pervasive and profound."
Reacting to the accusations of the state APC governorship candidate, Omo-Agege, through the information commissioner, Charles Aniagwu in a press briefing shortly after Omo-Agege's press conference, the state government described the senator as a "mace rustler".
Aniagwu added that Omo-Agege disgraced the state before the entire world, stressing that, for that reason, such a character is not fit to govern a state like Delta.
Aniagwu said, "Omo-Agege has not even been able to attract a single project that we can hold on to, even with his position as the Deputy President of the Nigerian Senate.
“What is he promising? I do not want to remind him that we (Delta state government) had to apologize to Nigerians on his behalf when he led thugs to harass lawmakers in the Senate and made away with the mace, the symbol of authority of the Senate.
“Let him mention one bill he sponsored in his two tenures at the Senate. Even those working with him are resigning in droves because he doesn’t take care of them. This lane he is following will not take him anywhere and our state is too precious for us to allow anybody to take us backwards.
"Ovie Omo-Agege is bogus and empty, while it is acceptable for political aspirants to address the populace within their democratic rights on their intentions if elected, the APC governorship candidate in the state could only offer lies to Deltans.
“The only time we heard him speak at the National Assembly was when he kicked against the electronic transmission of results; that was the only time he found his voice in the upper chamber because he is looking for ways to come in through the backdoor. If he says otherwise, let him come and tell us which other contribution he made that is remarkable.
"For the governorship candidate of the APC to begin to cast aspersions on Okowa's administration that he needed to learn from, is, to say the least, uncharitable. In the last seven years, Governor Okowa has been able to construct roads, provide social amenities in the creeks and uplands. I am sure that Omo-Agege is not even aware of our intervention in both the primary and secondary education sectors in the state as well as the establishment of three more universities. Sporting facilities in Delta have been adjudged to have improved far beyond what they used to be seven and a half years ago.
"Omo-Agege lacks knowledge of the state that he wants to govern, otherwise, he would have known that nearly 20, 000 Deltans have been empowered to become entrepreneurs. The airport that Omo-Agege is flying in and out from has been upgraded; perhaps, he is not seeing it.
“So, if I were him, the best thing would have been to sit down and think of how to copy from governor Okowa and learn how to even administer a local government since he won’t have the opportunity to administer this state since he has demonstrated crass emptiness in the management of resources. Let us remind him that while we do not have any problem with him contesting elections, we advise him to change his tactics."