Former Delta State Governor and PDP ex-vice presidential candidate, Ifeanyi Okowa, has said that he and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) to secure better opportunities for Delta State.
Last week, Okowa and Oborevwori officially defected to APC, a situation that seems to have unsettled the PDP at national level.
Speaking during a ceremony held by the APC to welcome them, Okowa explained that connecting to the federal power center in Abuja was necessary for the state’s progress. Reflecting on his time in office, he admitted that being in opposition cost Delta State vital resources. Okowa insisted the decision was not for personal gain but a strategic move to ensure the state taps into federal goodwill and development funds.
According to Okowa: “When the news broke on Wednesday that we had decided to change our path, people wondered why, but one thing is very important in a people’s history: there is always a time to change their path for the common good of the people.
“As I did tell people that day, it was not about me, it was not about the governor, but the fact that there is a need for us to connect to Abuja, that goodwill that is in Abuja, that resource that’s in Abuja of which Delta State is a large contributor, there was a need to connect to it.
“I was governor for eight years. I was in opposition. I did my best but we lost a lot. And I did not believe that the governor needed to stay working very hard, and we know that we are very supportive of Governor Sheriff because he’s doing a lot.
“But as the governor is doing a lot for us, he also needs to connect to the greater source of power and resource and goodwill in Abuja.”