Relentless Great Ogboru and the 2015 elections

Onome Oraka

Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru, the Governorship candidate of the Labor Party (LP) in the 2015 General Elections in Delta state has described the 2015 General Elections as his final battle in the quest to “liberate the people of Delta State.”

“In the agitation, movement and struggle to liberate Delta State, we all can see now that there is a big difference. We have fought so many battles and even when they win, they say we didn’t win, but this is the last battle and the last river to cross”

Call him the Abraham Lincoln of Nigeria, Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru is the persistent, unrelenting politician. Ogboru never gives up. He is said to be holding the highest record of governorship contest and disputation in Nigeria. Ogboru is not a man that is easily cowed by failure.

Ogboru’s political ambition began in 2000 when he gathered patriotic stakeholders in Delta State under an umbrella organization, the South South Rainbow Coalition, SSRC. The SSRC later merged with the Alliance for Democracy, AD, to contest the 2003 gubernatorial elections. Ogboru was said to have won the elections and there was a radio announcement to that effect. His victory was ephemeral as the police disrupted the jubilations of the residents of the peoples of Delta Sate over Ogboru’s victory and Ibori was mysteriously declared winner of the elections.

Ogboru moved to the Democratic People’s Party, DPP to contest the 2007 elections. He lost to PDP’s Emmanuel Ewetan Uduaghan, the cousin of the former governor James Ibori. Ogboru not satisfied with the results of the elections challenged his loss in court. After a three- and- a half year legal battle, Ogboru succeeded in removing Uduaghan’s government from power in 2010. The victory of Uduaghan as Governor was invalidated by the Court of Appeal in Benin City and a fresh election was ordered by the Court on January 6, 2011. This was a major victory for Ogboru and his supporters went wild with celebration. His victory was short-lived when Uduaghan was declared the winner by INEC despite the evidence to the contrary.

Dissatisfied with the results, Ogboru went back to the court, but both the tribunal and the appellate court dismissed his petitions.

Ogboru with his resilient spirit took his grievances to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court struck out the appeal without looking at the merit of the appeal. Ogboru in his doggedness, filed a motion against the Supreme Court, and after his lawyer, Sebastian Hon unilaterally withdrew his case without prior information, Ogboru suffered a setback. Ogboru again, through a new lead counsel, Dr. Osuala Dickson relisted his motion for review. On the 21st of June, 2013, the court struck out the motion and gave an end to the litigation.

On the 13th of November 2014, Ogboru dumped the Democratic People’s Party as he picked up the nomination form to contest the 2015 gubernatorial elections in Delta State under the platform of the Labour Party (LP).