- As Ernest Omeife Emergences Ward 7 Chairman
By ISIOMA CARLOS/BOJI BOJI OWA
The Delta State Commissioner for Works (Rural and Riverine Roads) and Public Information, Hon Charles Aniagwu has described the just-concluded APC Ward 7 Congress in Akumazi-Umuocha, Ika North East Local Government Area, as peaceful, transparent, and largely successful, attributing the smooth process to effective consensus building among party stakeholders.
Aniagwu made this remark on Wednesday, February 18, 2025, while speaking to journalists shortly after the congress was held at the premises of Umuocha Primary School, Akumazi-Umuocha.
Responding to questions on how the election process went, the Commissioner expressed gratitude to God for the level of understanding and cooperation among party members, noting that the congress was conducted through a well-coordinated mechanism that ensured inclusiveness and fairness.
According to him he said, “We must give God the glory for the understanding that exists amongst our people here. We adopted a mechanism that made it possible for us to have more or less a seamless election of those who will be leading us at the ward level,” Aniagwu stated.
Aniagwu explained that prior to the congress, the party followed directives from the APC leadership by organizing several meetings at different levels, ensuring that all interests were captured before arriving at the final list of ward executives.
According to him, Ward 7 consists of 19 political units, and the party leadership ensured that all the units were involved in the decision-making process.
Continuing, “We brought in everybody from the 19 units, almost about 120 of us, to decide which particular position goes to which unit,” he said.
He added that after positions were shared among the units, unit leaders were mandated to return to their people for consultations, sometimes meeting with up to 15 or 20 persons, before presenting their candidates for inclusion in the ward executive council (EXCO).
He stressed that the essence was to ensure that the ward leadership structure was not lopsided but reflected the collective will of the people. The commissioner further disclosed that he deliberately avoided imposing candidates, even within his own unit, despite his influence as the ward leader.
“As the leader of this ward, I didn’t allow my strength to come to bear. I didn’t go beyond my unit,” he said.
He noted that his unit already had respected political figures, including a former local government chairman and a retired civil servant director, whom he encouraged to take charge of internal decisions.
Aniagwu described the process as true consensus building, where party members were allowed to raise objections, if any, but none was recorded.
“When they brought them, we asked if there was anybody with objections. They said no. That is what we call consensus building,” he added.
Speaking on recent internal disputes, Aniagwu revealed that some party members became unhappy because they expected to be automatically selected as ward executives, just as they were previously appointed when the party was in opposition.
He explained that now that the APC is the ruling party in Delta State, there is a greater need to carry everyone along.
“Some persons thought they would be members of the EXCO because they were handpicked in the previous EXCO. They failed to realize that that was when the party was in opposition. Now the party is ruling,” he said.
Aniagwu also criticized the alleged attempt by some aggrieved members to suspend him without following due process, describing such action as unacceptable and contrary to both party and traditional dispute resolution procedures.
“You don’t wake up and say you suspend someone without hearing from the person. Even in our villages, if a man complains about his wife, they will invite the wife to also speak. That is the proper way,” he noted.
Aniagwu emphasized that the ward executive composition was carefully arranged to balance interests between old and new members of the party, ensuring that everyone had a sense of belonging.
He cited the ward’s leadership structure as an example of deliberate integration.
“In this ward, the chairman is somebody you may call the new APC. The secretary and vice chairman are old APC. That is the way we did it down the line,” he explained.
He stressed that the congress was not only a decision of the majority but a decision embraced by all, describing the atmosphere as peaceful and satisfactory.
Also speaking at the congress, the Pioneer Chairman of APC in Ika North East Local Government Area, Mr. Sonny Onyejose, commended the process and described the ward as united.
Onyejose, who identified himself as an indigene of Owerre-Olubor, noted that Ward 7 is made up of three communities, namely Akumazi-Umuocha, Owerre-Olubor, and Ekwuoma.
He recounted his role in bringing the APC into Ika land and coordinating the party’s early activities in Delta State, including the first APC meeting held at Grand Hotel.
“I was the pioneer chairman of APC in Ika North East. I brought APC to Ika land and coordinated the inaugural meeting of APC in Delta State,” he stated.
On the issue of internal divisions, Onyejose rejected the narrative of “old APC” and “new APC,” insisting that all members are equal once they join the party.
“Today there is nothing like old APC or new APC. What we have is APC. Anybody that is saying old or new, I disagree. APC is one,” he declared.
He praised Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, the leader of APC in Delta State, for directing that congresses be handled at the ward level without interference from outside forces.
The newly elected APC Ward 7 executives include Ernest Omeife (Chairman), Jennifer C. Ngidi (Vice Chairman), Lucky Isioma Nduka (General Secretary), Akazue Ernest Isiechei (Assistant General Secretary), Lue Florence (Woman Leader), Anthonia Kwagwazim (Assistant Woman Leader), Mukolu Destiny (Youth Leader), Uju Mercy Awana (Assistant Youth Leader), Ndidi Monday (Organizing Secretary), Sylvester Chinedu (Assistant Organizing Secretary), Uka Pheebe (Treasurer), Osekwute O. Collins (Assistant Treasurer), Ezenwa Joseph (Financial Secretary), Osubor T. Okechukwu (Assistant Financial Secretary), Happy Akaru (Welfare Secretary), Odafidiani Patrick (Assistant Welfare Secretary), Egbuchinem C. Augustine (Publicity Secretary), Okonkwor Gilbson O. (Assistant Publicity Secretary), Nwagbogwu Watson (Auditor), Ngozi Okolie (Assistant Auditor), Ekwemuka Emeka (Ex-Officio), Kingsley Blessing A. (Ex-Officio), Joy Azuka (Ex-Officio), Nwaedozie Kido A. (Ex-Officio), Ernest Ochie C. (Physically Challenged Leader), and Nwokolo Christopher S. (Physically Challenged Leader).
