By Evans Onovughe
In response to Ufuoma Egbo’s recent commentary, “2027: Why The Urhobo Nation Must Root for a Ranking Senator,” one fact must be made abundantly clear: Delta Central does not need a senator whose re-election is anchored solely on ethnic entitlement or tenure in office.
What the Urhobo nation urgently requires is a senator who is competent, visible, courageous, and results-driven, a leader who can assertively champion our interests on the national stage and deliver tangible outcomes, not recycled rhetoric.
Egbo’s argument relies heavily on the assumption that senatorial “ranking” automatically equates to influence and development. But history, including recent experience, tells a different story.
Ranking without capacity, charisma, strategic insight, or courage is simply window dressing. It is performance, not presence, that drives progress.
Senator Ede Dafinone, despite his privileged access and elite credentials, has failed to demonstrate the force, visibility, and political tenacity required to effectively represent Urhobo at the national level.
The past two years of his tenure have seen a diminished voice for Delta Central in the Senate. The vibrancy and assertiveness once associated with that office under his predecessor, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, have faded.
Say what you will about Omo-Agege—he was bold, assertive, and visibly active. Under his watch, Urhobo issues were amplified, federal projects were attracted, and national attention was gained. Today, that energy has all but evaporated.
We must ask tough questions:
What significant bills or motions has Senator Dafinone sponsored?
What flagship federal projects has he influenced in Delta Central?
What national conversations has he stirred to the benefit of Urhobo people?
The silence is telling.
Delta Central does not need a seat-warmer, it needs a seat-holder with stature, strength, and strategy. A senator who commands the room, not one whose relevance depends on historical zoning or ethnic sentiments.
The argument that the Okpe/Uvwie/Sapele axis deserves a second term for the sake of “equity” collapses under the weight of underperformance. Representation is not a birthright; it is a contract with the people, one that demands results.
Public office must never be reduced to rotational appeasement or tokenism. Real equity comes with responsibility, and results. Egbo’s claim that Okpe has had only six years in the Senate skips the critical question: What has been achieved in those years?
Representation is about contribution, not just duration. It is not how long you sit at the table that matters—it’s what you do while you’re there.
A senator’s influence should be judged not by how long he’s held office, but by what he has done with that time. If, in his first term, when most legislators are eager to prove themselves, Dafinone has left little impression, how can we expect a second term to yield better results, especially when complacency often sets in?
The Urhobo nation stands at a critical juncture, grappling with infrastructure decay, economic stagnation, youth unemployment, and growing marginalisation. This is not the time to reward passivity with continuity.
We need a senator who is present at home and impactful in Abuja—a leader who can navigate the intricacies of governance, influence national policy, and drive development with urgency and resolve.
Turning the 2027 senatorial contest into a sentimental crusade for the Okpe axis or a push for “ranking” is not only shortsighted, it is dangerous. Influence in the National Assembly is not conferred by time alone but by presence, performance, and political acumen.
Senator Dafinone has had his chance. He has not seized it. Delta Central deserves better. Urhobo deserves better.
The next senator must emerge based on merit, capacity, and track record, not on ethnic arithmetic or superficial seniority. We must demand more than a placeholder.
We must insist on a warrior, one who brings energy, ideas, and execution to the Senate. Someone who understands the needs of the people and has the grit to meet them.
The notion of “not changing a winning team” only holds when the team is winning. Right now, Urhobo’s legislative representation is losing visibility, voice, and value.
If we are truly committed to advancing the interests of our people, then we must not shy away from difficult choices. Continuity without competence is not progress—it is stagnation.
This is not just about Okpe. This is about Urhobo. And the time to redefine our representation is now.
Let the debate continue but let facts, performance and vision lead the way.
Evans Onovughe is a political analyst and commentator. He writes from Jesse, Ethiope West LGA.
