By John Oburhie
While still nursing the shame of failing to deliver his unit and ward in the Isoko South Constituency 1 bye election held on September 11, there seems to be no respite for the Chairman of the Delta State All Progressives Congress, Prophet Jones Erue.
The latest is that his former aide and cousin, Hon Emakpor Odogu who defected to the leading People’s Democratic Party a few days to the bye election has filed a petition against him at the High Court, Effurun, seeking relief for what he considers libellous and malicious content in a press statement in which the Delta APC claimed to have suspended him even after he had left the party.
Odogu, popularly known as “I have a dream” shredded the political profile of the Delta APC Chairman by not only restricting him to just two votes in his polling unit but leading the PDP to a resounding victory over the APC in Emede Ward 5 (the APC Chairman’s ward) in the bye election.
Odogu said he returned to the PDP to teach Erue a political lesson following what he described as serial betrayals which came to a head in the APC primary election in which Erue upturned the victory of Michael Emumena (MC Paul) to Ogaga Ifowodo whom he said was unpopular and clearly lost the primary.
“It is shameful for Jones Erue who claims to be a man of God and a prophet to have conveyed someone else’s victory at the primary to another person who was quite unpopular and clearly lost the primary but it is even more shameful for him to lie that I was suspended when he knew fully well, as I told them days before, that I had left party. In fact I was received by His Excellency, Governor Okowa, the Delta PDP Chairman, Kingsley Esiso the leaders of Isoko PDP including Hon Ross Uredi, Chief Askia Ogieh and a host of others at a rally in Emede.
“I went with all my supporters and the result of the bye election shows that he had no political value, was never in control. We had just been propping him. Perhaps the only two votes he got in his unit was by him and his wife or his younger brother.
“We are cousins and it is obvious that no member of our extended Omanunwhe family voted the party he leads. In fact, he called a meeting to get the family to convince me not to disgrace him but they told him that he should correct his wrongs but he failed to.
“Sensing the disgrace ahead, the Isoko APC leaders called me to a meeting on September 6 to plead with me not to leave them but I told them it was too late. Just after they failed to persuade me, Erue caused that statement of suspension to be written.
“I ordinary wouldn’t have bothered if it was just a statement of suspension but I take exception to the allegations contained therein. That’s why I am seeking redress. He will either have to prove the allegations or retract them or I proceed with legal action.”
