Governor Oborevwori Hints at Ibori’s APC Defection

 

The political winds in Delta State are shifting and fast. At the heart of it is Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, who recently made headlines by leading a mass defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Now, he’s setting his sights on bringing a key political patriarch back into the fold: former Governor James Ibori.

Speaking at a solemn vigil mass for the late former Deputy Governor Amos Utuama, held at St. Andrew’s Catholic Church in Otu-Jeremi, Oborevwori used the moment not just to honor a respected leader, but to issue a public appeal for unity within the fractured political family of Delta State.

“You have created a big family, and the family needs to be united,” the governor said, addressing Ibori directly. “Some are in APC, some in Labour Party, and others elsewhere… But I know he will join us very soon in APC. I will receive our leader in Jesus’ name.”

The appeal wasn’t just sentimental. It was strategic. As Oborevwori put it, political disunity at home weakens the state’s voice in Abuja. “When you go to the federal level, you can’t speak in different voices,” he stressed. “The center cannot hold if the family is broken.”

Ibori’s possible defection wouldn’t be entirely surprising. In December 2024, his daughter, Hon. Erhriatake Ibori-Suenu, left the PDP for the APC. The writing, it seems, is already on the wall.

And the stakes? They're more than symbolic. Just this month, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, declared that the APC’s structure in Delta now rests firmly in Oborevwori’s hands a clear sign of shifting power dynamics.

As Delta’s political landscape evolves, all eyes are on Ibori. Will the godfather of Delta politics answer the call to reunite the family under one party? Only time and strategy will tell.