Opinion

THE DIE IS CAST, BUT THE DICE NOW ROLLS TO OCHEI

Published

2 months ago

September 7, 2026

I read Dr. Norbert Chiazor’s elegant piece on the triumvirate of Anioma politics with admiration. I respect him as a fellow Jacksonite, Senior colleague with knack for Shakespearean and Elizabetan poetic diction which has earned him the title of Wordsmith.He is right about one thing: Okowa, Nwoko and Ochei are indeed musketeers in the political landscape of Delta North. Each man has etched his name in our story.

But history, if we must invoke it, is not static. It moves. And 2027 is not 2014.

Chiazor describes Okowa as the matchless strategist and mythic destiny. I agree. He broke the jinx. He became the first Governor of Anioma extraction. That jinx-breaking was historic, and Anioma will forever honour him for it. He rose from council chairman to commissioner to SSG to Senator to Governor. A vast and sturdy stature, no doubt.

Chiazor describes Nwoko as the iconoclastic mystique, the maverick, the British-groomed cosmopolitan. Again, apt. Whether in the Green Chamber from 1999-2003 or now in the Red Chamber, he has been vocal, adventurous, and unapologetically Anioma.

But he describes Ochei as merely spontaneous, euphoric and combative. There, my good Doctor, you understated a man who is far more than spontaneity.

Permit me to re-introduce Rt Hon . (Engr ) Victor Onyekachi Ochei Esq, (FNSE)

Ochei is not spontaneous. He is prepared.

He is a third-term legislator who served Aniocha North for 12 unbroken years from 2003 to 2015. As Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly from 2011 to 2014, he did not just preside – he reformed. He overhauled the entire Assembly complex, modernized the hallowed chambers, instituted capacity building for legislators and prioritized the welfare of staff. Ask the workers of that Assembly. They remember.

He is an Engineer, a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, who became Executive Director, Maritime Labour and Cabotage Services at NIMASA. There, he reformed the welfare of dockworkers and seafarers and deliberately opened employment doors for Deltans in an agency that had forgotten us.

He is a trained Lawyer, which means he brings both technical depth and legislative jurisprudence to lawmaking a rare blend the Senate desperately needs.

He is the President of the Nigeria Tennis Federation who gave Nigeria a historic place in the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Championship qualifiers. He promotes Wheelchair Basketball, sponsors the DAVNOTCH National Tennis Championship, and built from his personal resources a state-of-the-art mini stadium with modern tartan tracks in Onicha-Olona. While others built political structures, he built sporting infrastructure.

Now, to brass tacks: Whither Okowa or Ochei?

My brother Chiazor asks what will speak for Okowa in 2027 and lists: History, Intelligence, Experience, Maturity. I do not dispute those.

But I ask Anioma: What will speak for Ochei?

Recency. Relevance. Readiness. Reach to the grassroots.

Okowa’s story is the story of yesterday’s jinx broken. Ochei’s story is the story of tomorrow’s future being built.

Okowa made men, Chiazor says. True. But Ochei empowered boys and girls who had no godfather. Scholarships without noise. School buses for schools in the hinterland. Access roads to farmsteads. Vehicles for police and vigilante when insecurity knocked. He empowered without making you kneel.

The political confrontation of December 8, 2014 at the Cenotaph in Asaba was indeed unforgettable. Okowa floored a dozen aspirants including Ochei, Elumelu, Obuh and others. It was a masterstroke.

But 2027 is not a primary in a stadium. It is a general election in the open field of Delta North. The delegates are no longer a few hundred party faithful. The delegates are the market women in Agbor, the farmers in Ukwuani, the fishermen in Ndokwa, the students in Asaba, the youths in Ika.

And in that open field, the question is not who broke the jinx yesterday, but who understands the hunger of today.

Okowa had eight years as Governor to provide social infrastructure and empowerment. Posterity will judge him, as Chiazor rightly says. But posterity is also asking: After eight years as Governor, after four years as Senator before that, what new thing will another four years in the Senate bring that was not done in twelve years in executive and legislative power?

Ochei, on the other hand, has been out of government since 2015. He has been in the field, in sports, in business, in philanthropy, in touch. He is not coming to the Senate to rest. He is coming to the Senate to prove a point that legislative experience combined with executive exposure in NIMASA and private sector discipline can give Delta North purposeful representation.

Chiazor says Okowa commands the crowd and knows the configuration of wards and local governments. I put it to you: Ochei knows the condition of those wards. He knows which school has no roof. Which road has no culvert. Which community needs a borehole, not a billboard.

One is a strategist of power. The other is a strategist of projects.

Anioma in 2027 does not need a dignified identity alone. We already have that, thanks to Okowa who broke the jinx. What Anioma needs now is a diginified future – jobs for our youths, modern facilities for our talents, a voice that will be combative, not calm, when our interests are threatened on the floor of the Senate.

Okowa is calm even in the face of extreme triggers, Chiazor praises. With respect, Anioma in these extreme times does not need calm in the Senate. It needs audacity. It needs a man who will bang the table for us.

That is Ochei. Exuberantly primed. Euphorically ready.

Chiazor says: I stand with Okowa. Firmly! That is democracy. The beauty of free will. The liberty of conviction.

I say: I stand with Ochei. Firmly! Not out of sentiment, but out of scrutiny. Not because he is flawless, but because he is fitting for this time.

The die is indeed cast.

But this time, the dice is rolling towards Onicha-Olona.

DELTA NORTH REMEMBERS, AND DELTA NORTH WILL DECIDE.

-Austin Edemodu, Phd is an Abuja based Journalist and Public Affairs Analyst.

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Opinion

China-Africa Cooperation: Tackling Insecurity Through Development

Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman B. Dambazau (rtd), PhD, CFR, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the People’s Republic of China.

Published

2 days ago

November 9, 2026

The Gleamer

By Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman B. Dambazau (rtd), PhD, CFR

A farmer who cannot safely reach his land, a child whose school has closed because of violence, and a young graduate unable to find productive employment experience insecurity in different ways.

Their circumstances reveal a common challenge: lasting peace requires protection from violence and the opportunity to live with dignity. This connection should occupy a central place in China–Africa cooperation.

My experience in military leadership, internal security and diplomacy has reinforced my conviction that security operations must form part of a broader national effort. Armed forces and law enforcement agencies have indispensable responsibilities to protect communities, confront violent groups and uphold the law.

The gains they secure become durable when legitimate institutions, functioning services and economic opportunities take root.

Development is therefore a strategic component of security. Where communities can farm, trade, learn and obtain justice, they have stronger foundations for resisting the pressures that sustain violence.

Poverty does not automatically produce terrorism or criminality. Millions endure hardship without turning to violence. Insecurity also arises from political exclusion, contested resources, extremist ideologies, organised crime and institutional weakness. Nevertheless, prolonged deprivation and a lack of credible opportunities can create vulnerabilities that violent actors exploit.

Effective policy must address both those actors and the conditions that enable their influence.
China–Africa cooperation offers a framework for advancing this approach. The Forum on China–Africa Cooperation’s Beijing Action Plan for 2025–2027 brings peace and security into the same programme as industrialisation, agriculture, infrastructure, education, public health and green development. Its significance lies in the opportunity to connect these fields through practical implementation.

China’s development experience provides useful lessons. A joint study by the World Bank and Chinese institutions reported in 2022 that, over the preceding four decades, the number of people in China living below the international extreme-poverty line then in use had fallen by close to 800 million.

The study emphasised economic transformation alongside targeted poverty reduction measures. African countries can examine how agricultural productivity, infrastructure, education and employment expanded opportunity, while adapting relevant lessons to their own circumstances.

Africa’s countries have distinct histories, political systems and development priorities. Cooperation will achieve more when African governments define their needs clearly and negotiate partnerships that strengthen domestic capabilities. African ownership must guide project selection, implementation and assessment.

Agriculture should be an immediate priority. In communities affected by insecurity, restoring farming and rural commerce can support recovery and stability. Cooperation in irrigation, improved seeds, machinery, storage, processing and extension services can raise productivity and strengthen livelihoods. Investment should be accompanied by secure access to land, fair arrangements for managing water and grazing resources, and credible mechanisms for resolving disputes.

A processing facility has greater value when farmers can reach it safely, receive fair payment and access wider markets. Communities emerging from violence also need assistance that enables displaced families to return voluntarily, safely and with dignity, and rebuild sustainable livelihoods. Development planning and security planning must meet at this practical level.

Reliable electricity and productive industry are equally important. Power supply enables workshops, factories, health facilities and digital enterprises to function. Industrial cooperation should create opportunities for African workers, suppliers and entrepreneurs, with clear provisions for skills transfer and the maintenance of equipment and facilities.

Young people need realistic pathways from education to work. Technical training should connect to actual demand in manufacturing, construction, agriculture, logistics and technology. Programmes should be assessed by the capabilities and employment they produce. Partnerships between training institutions and employers can help ensure that qualifications lead to productive work.

Infrastructure must be judged by the economic activity and public services it enables. A railway, road or port can support national integration and trade, but its wider benefits depend on connections to local production and affordable access. Project planning must account for maintenance, environmental protection, community interests and financial sustainability. Financing arrangements should be transparent, with repayment obligations assessed against realistic economic returns and public resources.
Education and health deserve the same strategic attention.

Schools help communities recover continuity and hope after disruption. Accessible healthcare reduces household vulnerability and strengthens confidence in public institutions. Cooperation among universities, research centres, hospitals and technical colleges can build the expertise African countries need to sustain these services.

Women must participate fully in this work. Their livelihoods, access to services and involvement in local decision-making matter to household resilience and community recovery. Programmes designed without their participation risk overlooking essential needs and sources of knowledge.

Development cannot compensate for injustice. Communities require fair policing, accessible courts, accountable administration and protection from abuse. A school or clinic will contribute more to lasting stability where citizens also trust public institutions to treat them fairly. Economic investment and institutional reform should proceed together.

Security cooperation should reinforce these foundations. Professional training, peacekeeping capacity, maritime security, action against illicit arms and stronger responses to organised crime can help protect development gains.

Such cooperation should uphold national law, human rights and accountability. Its ultimate purpose must be the safety of people and the strengthening of legitimate institutions.
For Nigeria, the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership established during President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s September 2024 visit to China provides a framework for pursuing these objectives. It offers an opportunity to connect bilateral cooperation more closely with Nigeria’s priorities for economic transformation and national security.

The next task is disciplined implementation. Every major commitment should have an identified responsible institution, a financing arrangement, a timetable and measurable outcomes. Proposed projects, signed agreements, funds disbursed and completed investments represent different stages of progress. Public reporting should make those distinctions clear.

We should ask practical questions. Has an agricultural project improved farmers’ incomes? Has an industrial investment created sustainable employment and developed local suppliers? Has training transferred skills that institutions can retain? Have communities affected by conflict gained safer access to schools, healthcare and markets?

These questions should guide the assessment of cooperation. They also require African governments to fulfil their own responsibilities: coordinating institutions, protecting public resources, maintaining infrastructure and ensuring that investment benefits communities fairly. Regional cooperation is essential where trade routes, shared resources and security threats cross national borders.

China–Africa cooperation can contribute substantially to peace when development expands opportunity, institutions earn public trust and security agencies protect citizens effectively. Its lasting achievement should be visible in ordinary lives: farmers returning safely to their fields, young people securing worthwhile work and children remaining in school. These are the foundations on which a more secure Africa can be built.

_Abdulrahman B. Dambazau is a retired Lieutenant General, former Chief of Army Staff and former Minister of Interior. He is currently the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the People’s Republic of China. He writes from Beijing, China._

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