Our Future: A Collective Enterprise – Working Together Towards A Greater Delta: Selected Speeches of Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, Governor of Delta State, Nigeria
Edited by Thomas Okpaku
Foreword by Dr. Joseph O. Okpaku, Sr.
Reviewers: Chuks C. Egbe and Uzemba K. Macebuh
WITHOUT doubt, there would be, no, there already are, heated debates about what Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has, to date, accomplished in his tenure as Governor of Delta State. When that time comes, or rather, as that process continues, in earnest, a most critical instrument for such an assessment would be what Governor Uduaghan deliberately and purposefully set out to accomplish, in the first place, as clearly articulated by himself, in his own words.
Our Future: A Collective Enterprise – Working Together Towards A Greater Delta is the very embodiment of the Governor’s planned and premeditated agenda, which makes the book a most critical and timely document that all of us, (as) leaders, politicians, the public at large and, for that matter, all who are interested in the dynamics and challenges of an evolving democracy, wherever they may be in the world, must read and study in depth.
In the forward, Dr Okpaku, Sr.states that, “For those who hold positions of public office or service, in Delta State, whether political or in the civil service, Our Future: A Collective Enterprise serves as a “concordance” with which to understand, in precise terms, the road map and agenda of their chief executive – they need to study it and use it as their manual or handbook, in diligent pursuit of their service.
Articulated vision
For Deltans at large, it is the full story of what their governor has promised to deliver on – they should study it carefully, in order not only to understand the direction in which the state is and has been headed, but as a tool for assessing their chief executive’s performance and for holding him accountable, keeping him faithful to his articulated vision, strategy, agenda, program and promise.
For Nigerians, and the general reader, anywhere, this book offers an invaluable thesis on the conceptualization, formulation and articulation of the political strategy and development agenda of a chief executive; one who is at the helm of a state renowned for stylish, even if vociferous, self-expression and vigorous disputation on public affairs (if not virtually on practically all matters), occasionally unencumbered by the constraints of mastery of necessary knowledge, facts and information. A common thread in these speeches is the notion of a Greater Delta, which would come about by the concerted and constructive application of the massive human and material resources with which the state is endowed, always with the right-minded people at the wheel. Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has a deep conviction that to actualize this dream of a greater Delta State, there must be shared values, vision and sense of purpose.
Apart from Selected Speeches acting as Road Map for the Governor, in the transformation of Delta State and its people, an appropriate tool to assess, as to whether Dr Uduaghan kept faith with the people and his promises, this book, embellished by a pictorial panorama of selected moments in his tenure, serves as a very personal and intimate reminder; a sort of diary of purpose with which to often check his direction and performance against the agenda and program he has painstakingly devised and formally articulated, in pursuit of his public oath of office. In other words, this book provides a unique service of personal checks and balances for the governor.
Political environment
This colourful book has an in-depth foreword. It touches on issues of legacy of any public figure in Nigeria. It takes a look at the general political environment; enlightened chief executive; a people diminished; the decline of the political class; a template for Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan; The Man; Uduaghan’s Delta state; Delta Diaspora Direct; Paradigm Shift: Delta Beyond Oil and the Significant Accomplishments of Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan. Governor Uduaghan sees a Delta State that can and must be developed to the highest global standards, in real time, equal to and competitive with the best the world can offer. It is in order to practically bring about this palpable possibility that he established the Delta State Integrated Development Programme (DIDP), a long-term strategic planning unit with a simple marching order, to craft a masterplan for Delta State, decades beyond his term of office and unencumbered by short-term constraints and considerations.
Delta Diaspora Direct (D3): The governor has made concerted effort to reach out to Deltans around the world. By the effort, he has worked hard to promote their participation in the overall comprehensive efforts to develop the state under the banner of Delta Diaspora Direct or D3.
Strategic Vision: The Three Point Agenda: When he took office as governor on May 29, 2007, Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan laid out his strategic vision for Delta State under the banner: The Three Point Agenda. This Agenda consisted of Peace and Security, Human Capital Development and Infrastructural Development. His policies, strategies and programmes have been based in one way or another on this agenda.
Paradigm Shift: Delta Beyond Oil: Significant Accomplishments
Whatever the shortcomings or pending deficits of his administration might be, a few accomplishments of a strategic nature and dimension stand out which are destined to leave a lasting impact on the lives and well-being of the people of Delta State. They include the following:
- 1.The Restoration Of Peace And Security To The Niger Delta
- Infrastructure Development
- Human Capital Development
- Affordable Healthcare: Free Prenatal Care
- Climate Change and the Protection of the Ecology and the Environment.
The clarion call is to service. It is service to a state, people and a cause greater than one person: a greater Delta, a cause that supersedes ethnicity, religion, and ideology; a cause that forges brotherhood and sisterhood through tolerance, forgiveness; the acceptability of different points of view in a unifying manner that connects people and groups, rather than divide; a cause aimed at building bridges and alliances and beckoning on all to create the bond necessary for working side by side, in pursuit of the dream of a greater Delta State, as Miracle of the modern times.
It is the hope of the editor/publisher, Thomas Okpaku, that this book put together from public information, highlighting the governor’s dreams, vision, mission and the implementation thereof, will open up real, positive debates and dialogue as to how to move Delta to greater heights. These selected speeches are a must read and highly recommended for everyone who wishes to gain an insight into three point agenda on which Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan’s plan for Delta State’s development are hinged, what propels him and the many achievements under the three point agenda that is advancing the frontiers of governance in Nigeria.
- Tom Okpaku, editor and publisher, is the editor of Nigeria Home and Abroad, by Professor I.A. Gambari; Africa In the UN In Changing World Order, by Professor I.A. Gambari, among others. He is President and CEO of African Women Health, Education and Empowerment Center, USA and Nigeria.