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By Ode Akpotilegbe and Ukane Godwin

The rot in Delta’s state-owned media has reached breaking point, with the Delta Broadcasting Service (DBS) Warri and Asaba — operators of Delta Rainbow Television, Delta Television, Voice of Delta — and the Pointer Newspaper now gasping for survival under Governor Sheriff Oborevwori.

Comrade Williams Odeavwarehor Aminugo, Secretary General of the National Association of Ughelli and Ethiope Media Practitioners, dropped the bombshell during a visit to DBS Warri, blasting the governor for “deliberately abandoning” the state’s only broadcast institutions while channeling patronage to private and national outlets.

“These institutions, founded by Olorogun Felix Ibru and expanded by Chief James Ibori, were meant to serve as the people’s voice. Today, they have been murdered and buried alive by successive governments — and Sheriff Oborevwori has done nothing to resurrect them,” Aminugo declared.

He accused past administrations, particularly that of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, of laying the foundation for the decay, recalling how a commissioner under Okowa carted away a state-owned Outside Broadcast Van meant for DBS Warri to his residence in Asaba and never returned it.

“From then till now, the story has been one of plunder, rot, and betrayal,” Aminugo fumed. “The Warri and Asaba stations have become a national embarrassment — off air for hours, running on outdated, broken-down equipment, while private stations flourish across the state.”

According to him, the shame is even more profound given Delta’s huge monthly allocation and internally generated revenue. “How can a state as wealthy as Delta not boast of one functional TV or radio station? Instead, DBS and Pointer have become conduit pipes for unbridled corruption and looting by state officials. It is a scandal of the highest order,” he thundered.

Aminugo also raised the alarm over growing insecurity around the Warri station, warning that without urgent intervention from security agencies, the facility risks total collapse.

He insisted that Governor Oborevwori’s silence and inaction are not just failures of leadership but betrayals of public trust.

“Broadcast media exist to inform and empower the people, not to deform them. President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda cannot thrive in darkness, while Delta sinks into silence. The people deserve better — and Oborevwori must act now, or go down in history as the governor who presided over the funeral of Delta’s media voice,” Aminugo charged.