This week on our Personality of the Week, we bring you insight into the life of Mr. Emmauel Ojemeh, a native of Ekuku Agbor, Ika South Local Government Area and the Special Assistant to Dr. Cairo Ojougboh.
Mr Ojemeh was born on the 7th of May 1974 into the family of Mr. and Mrs. Godwin Ojemeh, he grew up in Ekuku-Agbor where he attended Omozie Primary School. After which there, he went to Ute-Okpu Grammar School, from where he proceeded to Auchi Polytechnic, where he obtained an OND in Accountancy, from which1997-1999. Thereafter, he moved to Delta State University, Abraka, where he obtained a BSC in Economics in the year 2004.
Mr. Ojemeh is married to Mrs. Nancy Ojemeh and they are blessed with three kids. Aside politics he is also a businessman whose driving force is serving his people. His philosophy about life is “Live and let’s live”. He said he grew in an average home where hard work was encouraged. He said he left his parents at his Secondary School Level. He is the first out of seven children, four girls and three boys.
Mr. Ojemeh recounts that after graduation, he ventured into active politics where he served as an Assistant to the then Executive Chairman of Ika South, Engr. Andrew Obiazi from 2012-2014. Moving from there he became a Special Assistant to the then South South PDP Chairman, Chief Dr. Cairo Ojougboh from 2014-2015. Mr. Ojemeh who is still a Special Assistant to Dr. Cairo Ojuogboh said his boss , who was the former PDP Chairman, South-South zone left the PDP in 2016 to the ruling party APC, due to the impunity in the aforementioned party.
Discussing the politics in Ika South, the staunch politician said the politics in Ika South is dicey. He said Ika South People are ignorant of the politics at the State level. He asserted that Ika South has been maligned for a long time, hence Dr. Cairo Ojuogboh’s outbursts. He posited that his boss is set to liberate the people of Ika South from the bondage, they have been put into by their sister local government, Ika North East. He revealed that his boss has joined the race for the 2019 general elections with the aim to liberate Delta State from the shackles of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa and the PDP led State Government. He called on Ika South People and all Ika People to rally round Dr. Cairo Ojuogboh, to give him their maximum support, come 2019. He stated categorically, that Ika South is being marginalized in so many ways, even when an Ika man is the current state governor.
Revealing further, he stated that the State Government’s Empowerment Programme is a scam. He said there are no notable achievements of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and the empowerment scheme in the lives of Ika South Youths. He maintained that in Ika North East, the youths are more empowered with various political appointments, compared to Ika south.
He said their decision to swap PDP for APC was due to the fact that they are soldiers of truth; hence they could not stand the impunity and deception in the PDP, especially after the ruling affirmed Alhaji Sheriff Markafi as the substantive chairman of the party. He is of the opinion that PDP governors have hijacked the leadership of the PDP, instead of the grassroots, as it were in the beginning. According to him, that was the bane of the problem.
Speaking on the differences between both the two dominant political parties in Nigeria, he said APC led by President Muhammadu Buhari is against corruption and corrupt officers, while the PDP destroyed the system due to their high level of corruption. He said under President Buhari, looters have desisted from looting due to the presidents’ war against corrupt officials.
Mr. Ojemeh is of the opinion that the Peoples Democratic Party has succeeded in doing nothing in the last sixteen years at the state level, judging by the development which has taken place in Anambra and Lagos States in the last 16 years. He is of the opinion that there has been no major project in Delta State under PDP leadership since 1999.
Expatiating further, he said the performance of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and other previous governors of the State have been abysmal and poor. He empathically scored Governor Ifeanyi Okowa 20%. He stated that Governor Okowa as an Ika man at the helm of affairs of Delta State is using the slot of Ika people, and yet there is nothing to show for it in Ika land. He asserted that those clamoring for the 2nd term of the governor are doing so based on selfish interests and personal gains.
Accessing the last Local Government Elections in the State, he opined that APC clearly won the elections, but the results showed otherwise due to impunity and rigging by DSIEC and the state government. He said due to the transparent and fair nature of President Buhari, he is sure to conduct a free and fair election in 2019; hence they are embarking on house to house campaigns to aid their course in 2019.
Speaking on the governorship ambition of his boss Dr. Ojuogboh in 2019, he said Deltans should expect lots of development in human capacity, education, economic, agriculture and all other forms of development round the state, when Ojuogboh wins, adding that these development are lacking in the present day government of the state.
Shedding light on the participation of Ika South in politics, he said there is hope for them, as long as they have their Permanent Voter cards which he referred to as their weapon with which to make their voices heard in 2019. He urged those who are yet to register or collect their PVC, to do so.
When asked the reason for his boss not being accepted by Ika South people, he referred to the proverbs that said, “a prophet is not recognized by his people”. He however revealed that Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa is the problem Ika South people have, because he deliberately incites them against Dr. Ojougboh.
He said Nigerians are now wiser, so the power of incumbency no longer guarantees reelection, as was the case of the Immediate past President of Nigerian, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. He emphatically stated that the masses are fed up with Dr. Okowa , hence he stated that 2019 elections in Delta State will be between the people of Delta State versus Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, not APC versus PDP, stating that APC is out to champion a revolution in the State.
Interestingly, he is of the opinion that come 2019, members of Dr. Okowa’s cabinet will work massively against him to stop his reelection. He expressed optimism that governor Okowa will be booted out of office in 2019.
Addressing the clamour for Ika South to produce the next House of Representative Member, Ika Federal Constituency, he said Governor Okowa being who he is, will not heed the call of Ika South people. He however said that the APC will bring up their candidate for the position soon.
He affirmed that the Governorship position belongs to Delta North, so his boss, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh is eligible to contest and win, since he is also from Ika Federal Constituency adding that it is a good permutation.
Mr. Ojemeh further said that the hunger and hardship being experienced in the country is due to the destruction caused by PDP in the last 16 years. He said, President Buhari is still trying to straighten the system, saying that 3 years is not enough time to do so. He pleaded with the people to be patient while Buhari corrects the atrocities committed by PDP.