By Ogochukwu Isioma
The Delta State Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders Forum, on Monday, February 20th, 2023, endorsed Atiku Abubakar, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for President and Vice President respectively, the State PDP Governorship Candidate, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori and his running mate, Sir Monday Onyeme, for the 2023 general elections.
In his speech in Effurun, Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State, on the occasion of the adoption, Comrade Isaac Oritseweyinmi Agbateyiniro, Chairman, Delta State Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders Forum, on noted that one sacrosanct fact in their minds is that the coming election is a referendum.
According to him, consequent upon this, the leadership of the Delta State Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders Forum, comprising of the Itsekiri National Youths Council, Ijaw Youths Council, Urhobo Youths Council, Isoko National Youths Assembly, Ndokwa Youth Leaders Assembly and Ika Youths Assembly with structures in all polling units, wards, communities and campuses of various higher institutions across the various Senatorial Districts of Delta State and with vast experience on how elections are conducted in Delta State for the past two decades and more are constrained to assert that the coming election is more about our future than their future and so, “we cannot afford to remain neutral”.
He disclosed that the leadership of the Forum set up a committee of eminent and impeccable stakeholders to examine the character, capability, health status, experience, track records, trust coefficient of all the Candidates and their party manifestos and recommend whom to endorse and work for in the general elections.
“After a thorough review of all the recommendations of the committee, the RECOVER NIGERIA Agenda of Atiku/Okowa and their unequivocal commitment towards a restructured Nigeria that represents our collective agitations and the EXPECT MORE Agenda of Sheriff/Onyeme were sanctioned by the leadership of this Forum as meeting the yearnings and aspirations of youths of Delta State who make up over 60% of the total population of the electorate”, he said.
He added that; “Accordingly, an official public endorsement ceremony was directed to be organised to make known to the whole world our position for the 2023 general elections and to back same up by activating all our teeming members spread across every nooks and crannies to go to their polling units as ambassadors of this declaration to deliver accordingly”.
He also said that; “It is therefore on the strength of this that we wish to on behalf of the leaders, stakeholders and teeming members of this Forum present to you this resolve as epitomised in this plaque as a mark of our absolute solidarity to the RESCUE NIGERIA MISSION of His Excellency, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP Presidential candidate and the EXPECT MORE Agenda of Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, Delta State PDP Gubernatorial Candidate”.
Leaders of the various ethnic nationalities, including that of Itsekiri National Youths Council, Ijaw Youths Council, Urhobo Youths Council, Isoko National Youths Assembly, Ndokwa Youth Leaders Assembly and Ika Youths Assembly, in their goodwill messages, said that they have all resolved to vote for all candidates of the PDP in the 2023 general elections and that there was no going back.
Responding, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, State PDP Governorship Candidate for the 2023 general elections and National Deputy Chairman of the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, described the endorsement as a great show of love.
He said that; “Let me assure you that this show of love will not be taken for granted, there is always a pay back time. We are grateful”
