2019 Exclusive: Warri South legislative leadership crisis exposes crack in Warri South PDP

The purported change in Warri South legislative leadership on Tuesday March 29 which allegedly saw 13 Councilors out of the 19 that makes up the Legislative Arm, reportedly signing the impeachment of Hon. Sunday Aguweye and Hon. Richard Pessu as Leader as well as Deputy Leader of the House respectively and subsequently replacing them with Hon. Marcus Udoyo, from Edjeba Ward and Hon. Matthew Dada from Omadino/Obodo Ward as the New House Leader and Deputy respectively, is an indication of major crack within Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Warri South Local Government Area ahead of the Party’s Ward and Local Government congresses in the build-up to the 2019 polls, Fresh Angle International  can exclusively report.

Despite denials by three of the thirteen Councilors that they only signed attendance register and not the purported impeachment of Hon. Sunday Aguweye and Hon. Richard Pessu, Majority Leader of the House and one of the arrowheads of the House Leadership Change, Hon. Romeo Ogedegbe, who ironically sat as Leader Pro-tempo during the impeachment drama, told Fresh Angle International in an exclusive telephone interview that it was only Hon. Daniel Alidu, representing Esisi Ward that was not in the controversial sitting, insisting that all other 18 Councilors, including the embattled Leader, Hon. Sunday Aguweye as well as his Deputy, Hon. Richard Pessu attended the plenary, where the House Leadership change allegedly occurred.

When asked if the Political Adviser to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Hon. Omimi Esquire and the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Political Affairs, Mr. Matthew Poko Opuoru, Hon. Griftson Omatsuli, Mr. Hope George and Hon. Odu Wilkie told them to revert to the status quo, that is maintaining the Hon. Sunday Aguweye/Hon. Pessu leadership, Hon. Romeo Ogedegbe averred, “it is hard to reverse it. The New Leadership remains, the Political Adviser admonished us that we should maintain peace, as Warri South is the correctional facility to every other council in the State and that we should leave everything as it is now without further advancement on any other plan, as we await the next meeting, which I think will be a fuller House of the Warri South leaders. It was just a normal legislative function and no grouse, it was based on loss of confidence amidst misconduct (referring to the Auweye leadership)”.

The major arrowhead of the development, Hon. Kingsley Tenumah summed his thoughts this way in a message, “there is no controversy on the House Leadership, Marcus/Matthew remains. Impeachment sustained, no going back”.

When contacted on the issue, Political Adviser to the Governor, Hon. Omimi Esquire and Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Political Affairs, Mr. Matthew Poko Opuoru, insisted that the aggrieved councilors were asked to maintain status quo, by implication retainaining the Hon. Aguweye and   Hon. Richard Pessu leadership.

Meanwhile, investigations by your soar-away International Tabloid reveal that the brewing crisis in the Warri South legislature which started with the Local Government Chairman, Hon. Matthew Mofe Edema submitting income and expenditure profile of his administration to the councilors based on their demand, is generating wider political implications, exposing a major crack in the PDP ahead of their Ward and Local Government Congresses.

Speculations are rife that the Delta State Commissioner for Transport, Mr. Vincent Uduaghan who is the political leader of Hon. Kingsley Tenumah and the member representing Warri South Constituency II in Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Dennis Omovie, among other top party bigwigs are allegedly backing the new House Leadership of Hon. Marcus Udoyo and Hon. Matthew Dada. Hon. Udoyo, a Councilor from the Agbarha-Urhobo stock was a former Aide to Hon. Dennis Omovie, who we learned is bent on installing his loyalists as PDP leaders at the Ward and Local Government levels, because of his alleged plan to recon-test the House of Assembly position in 2019 after he would have spent four terms in the same position at the end of the present political dispensation.

Fresh Angle International can also report that the purported emergence of a first-time Councilor, Hon. Marcus Udoyo as the House Leader is poised to divide the Urhobos of Warri as Okere-Urhobo leaders like Chief Emmanuel Okumagba are said to be seriously miffed with the development.

The anger is hinged on the understanding that the position of Leader of Warri South Legislative Arm, for which Hon. Sunday Aguweye has been holding sway was ceded to Okere-Urhobo  by the PDP after the Warri crisis and the position of Vice Chairman ceded to Agbarah-Warri Urhobos, hence Hon. Charlie Etseghara is Vice Chairman of the Local Government  for a second tenure and that made Mr. Dafe Ikpuri held sway as Vice Chairman of the immediate past Transition Committee of the Council.

Dr. Joseph Otumara, the Leader of PDP in Warri South Local Government was not in town as at the time of this report, but it was rumoured that he is averse to the Warri South Legislative House leadership change, while the member representing Warri South Constituency1 in the State House of Assembly, Hon. Omawumi Beatrice Udoh, a firm supporter of Hon. Matthew Mofe Edema was yet to be conscripted into what looks like an attempt to build a new political leadership in Warri South.

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