By Joe Ogbodu
For Mrs Felicia Okonta of Agbor, access to health insurance meant that a medical emergency did not translate into the sale of family property.
For Jideose Eboka of Ika North East, a skills-acquisition programme became a pathway from unemployment to entrepreneurship.
Their experiences represent two areas, healthcare and youth empowerment that are now featuring prominently in discussions around Senator Ifeanyi Okowa’s bid to return to the Senate in 2027.
Okonta said her family was able to obtain medical care without resorting to the sale of land because of their enrolment in Delta State’s contributory health insurance scheme.
“If not for the health insurance Okowa started, we would have sold our land to pay hospital bills. Now my family can go to the hospital without fear,” she told BIGPEN.
In Ika North East, Eboka, who trained in Electrical Engineering under the RYSA skills-acquisition programme, has gone on to establish StephJay Electricals, where he now employs two people.
“The programme came at a time when opportunities were uncertain, giving me the skills and foundation to build my own path,” he said.
The two accounts have become part of the wider conversation surrounding Okowa’s political future and his record in Delta North.
From Senate Bills To State Health Insurance
Before becoming governor in 2015, Okowa represented Delta North in the Senate between 2011 and 2015.
During his time in the 7th National Assembly, he was associated with several health-related legislative initiatives. In a 2015 article outlining his legislative record, Okowa listed the National Health Act, National Health Insurance Scheme legislation, sickle-cell disease legislation and legislation concerning discrimination against people living with HIV among the health measures he sponsored or supported.
A 2012 National Health Bill sponsored by Okowa also proposed a framework for the regulation, development and management of Nigeria’s national health system.
His legislative focus on healthcare later intersected with policy at the state level.
In June 2015, shortly after assuming office as governor, the Delta State Government transmitted a bill establishing the Delta State Contributory Health Commission to the State House of Assembly.
The bill was passed in December 2015 and signed into law by Okowa on February 4, 2016. The commission subsequently commenced operations under the contributory scheme in January 2017.
The scheme provides different categories of coverage, including formal-sector, informal-sector, equity and private health plans. Its equity plan specifically covers vulnerable groups, including children under five and pregnant women.
The scale of the programme has also expanded substantially over time. The DSCHC currently reports that it has provided services to more than 1.99 million enrollees and has 510 accredited public and private healthcare facilities across Delta State.
An independent 2024 health-insurance report placed total enrolment at more than 2.36 million, illustrating the continuing expansion of the scheme, although enrolment figures vary according to the reporting date and methodology.
Healthcare As A Political Legacy
For supporters of Okowa, the contributory health scheme is one of the policies through which his administration sought to reduce the financial burden of healthcare on residents.
The scheme was designed to provide prepaid access to healthcare rather than leaving families to meet major medical expenses entirely from their pockets.
That policy has continued beyond Okowa’s tenure, with subsequent administrations maintaining and expanding the commission.
For Okonta, the significance is personal.
Her experience, she said, illustrates the difference between having access to health insurance and facing a hospital bill without any form of financial protection.
Youth Skills And Entrepreneurship
Healthcare is not the only area being cited by Okowa’s supporters.
The RYSA programme, which trained young people in different vocational and technical skills, is being presented as another example of the former governor’s approach to youth empowerment.
Eboka’s progression from an unemployed youth to the owner of an electrical business has become one of the individual stories associated with that intervention.
His case also reflects the broader argument that skills-development programmes can create opportunities beyond direct government employment.
What A Return To The Senate Could Mean
At consultations with stakeholders in Delta North, Okowa has argued that his previous experience in the National Assembly and as governor gives him a broader understanding of governance and legislation.
His campaign platform currently places emphasis on effective legislation, healthcare, support for small businesses, youth and women empowerment, and improved federal attention to constituents.
The former governor has also spoken of his intention to leave what he described as an “indelible legacy” if returned to the Red Chamber.
His supporters are therefore pointing back to his legislative record between 2011 and 2015, as well as policies implemented during his eight years as governor, as evidence of what they say he could bring to the Senate.
Beyond Roads And Buildings
Okowa’s eight-year tenure also produced major infrastructure projects across Delta North, including roads in Asaba and other communities, bridges, drainage projects, airport expansion, public buildings and educational institutions.
The Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, which had remained incomplete for years, was reconstructed during his administration and became a major sporting facility in the state.
But for residents such as Okonta and Eboka, the most significant measure of government is not necessarily the size of a road project or the scale of a public building.
It can be something much more personal: the ability to obtain medical treatment without selling family property, or the opportunity to acquire a skill that eventually becomes a source of livelihood.
As the 2027 Delta North Senate contest takes shape, those individual experiences are likely to remain part of the conversation over Okowa’s record and his bid for a return to the National Assembly.
