Omo-Agege’s Media aide says President’s call for governors to abandon prestige projects in favour of people-centred development echoes long-standing criticism of Delta government’s spending priorities and demands full account of ₦3.5 trillion FAAC receipts.
By Our Reporter
ABUJA/ASABA — Media Adviser to Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, Mr. Sunny Areh, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent warning to state governors against prioritising flyover projects over people-oriented development has validated the opposition’s long-standing criticism of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori’s administration in Delta State.
Areh, in a statement on Friday, argued that the President’s remarks had reinforced accusations that the Oborevwori administration lacks a coherent developmental blueprint despite receiving what he described as over ₦3.5 trillion from the Federation Account since June 2023.
President Tinubu, while receiving traditional rulers from Oyo State at the Presidential Villa on Thursday, had urged governors to channel increased federal allocations into roads and infrastructure that directly improve citizens’ welfare and enhance security, rather than embarking on flyover projects with limited public impact.
Seizing on the President’s comments, Areh said Senator Omo-Agege had consistently raised similar concerns over what he described as Delta State’s “misplaced priorities.”
According to him, the former Deputy President of the Senate had repeatedly questioned why the state government continued to commit huge sums to flyover construction while many communities grapple with worsening insecurity, unemployment, poor healthcare and inadequate educational facilities.
“For months, Senator Omo-Agege stood almost alone in asking why a government receiving unprecedented allocations would focus on flyovers while ordinary Deltans struggle to survive. For speaking this truth, he was attacked, insulted and dismissed by the Delta State Government and its horde of media machinery,” Areh stated.
He maintained that the President’s admonition now places Omo-Agege’s criticisms at the centre of the national conversation on governance.
“The President’s own words echo exactly what Senator Omo-Agege has been saying. Truth has no party. You do not need to wear the same political jersey to speak the truth,” he said.
Areh alleged that about ₦177 billion had been committed to flyover projects in Warri, Effurun, Ughelli and Agbor while, according to him, primary healthcare centres lack essential drugs, schools remain understaffed and insecurity continues to threaten communities across the state.
“Concrete cannot cure sickness. Steel cannot feed a hungry child. Deltans deserve to know whether these projects pass the traffic and public-benefit test the President himself has now prescribed,” he said.
The Omo-Agege aide further called on the Oborevwori administration to publish a comprehensive account of all expenditures under the MORE Agenda, insisting that Deltans deserve to know how the state’s allocations have translated into tangible improvements in their daily lives.
He also urged the state government to subject all ongoing flyover and infrastructure projects to transparent public-benefit and traffic-impact assessments and redirect greater investment towards healthcare, education, agriculture, security and direct economic support for families.
Areh accused the Delta State Government’s media team of attacking Omo-Agege for raising issues that, according to him, have now received presidential endorsement.
He argued that governance should be judged by measurable improvements in the quality of life of citizens rather than by the number of bridges or flyovers commissioned.
“Delta does not need more photo-op projects. It needs leadership that measures success by the lives it touches, not the ribbons it cuts,” he stated.
Areh expressed confidence that the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), under its Delta State governorship candidate, Dr. Chris Iyovwaye, and Senator Omo-Agege as the party’s Delta Central senatorial candidate, would provide what he described as people-centred leadership focused on accountability and impactful development.
He concluded that history would remember Omo-Agege as “the leader who spoke truth to power” by demanding accountability over public spending and insisting that every naira of public funds should improve the lives of ordinary Deltans.
Editor’s Note: The claims in this report were made by Mr. Sunny Areh, Media Adviser to Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, and reflect the position of the NDC. Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and the Delta State Government were not represented in the statement and had not responded to the allegations at the time of filing this report.
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