By Wilfred Latimore Oghenesivbe, Esq.
As Nigeria approaches the 2027 general elections, Delta State is witnessing a significant political transformation, with Governor Sheriff Oborevwori’s administration, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the MORE Plus development agenda occupying the centre of political conversations.
The governor’s defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC in April 2025 marked a defining moment in the state’s political history, bringing together influential political leaders and stakeholders under a new political platform. The development has opened another chapter in Delta’s political evolution, with renewed attention to federal-state cooperation, infrastructure development and the administration’s development priorities.
The APC’s 2027 campaign has commenced with considerable organisational activity and growing engagement across the state. The inauguration of the Delta State APC Campaign Council in October 2026 provided the institutional framework for coordinating the party’s activities across the 25 local government areas.
Governor Oborevwori chairs the council, while former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo, Deputy Governor Monday Onyeme and other prominent political leaders are among its members. Senator James Manager serves as Director-General, with Chiedu Ebie as Deputy Director-General. The composition reflects the participation of experienced political figures and elected representatives in the party’s preparations.
An important feature of the emerging campaign is the level of organisation being devoted to grassroots mobilisation. The party has brought approximately 250 support groups under a coordinated framework, creating an expanded platform for community engagement and communication of its political programmes.
This development builds on the activities of existing ward and local government structures, with party leaders seeking to establish closer relationships with communities and stakeholders. The initiative demonstrates the importance the APC attaches to grassroots participation as the 2027 political season gathers momentum.
The official flag-off of the statewide campaign on November 5, 2026, in Oleh and Ozoro, headquarters of Isoko South and Isoko North local government areas respectively, marked another major milestone. The rallies attracted Governor Oborevwori, former Governor Okowa, Deputy Governor Onyeme, members of the State Executive Council, National Assembly members, party leaders and other prominent stakeholders.
The gatherings provided an opportunity for the party to present its candidates, articulate its political direction and showcase the development priorities of the Oborevwori administration. The subsequent campaign activities in Warri South-West, Udu, Oshimili North and Oshimili South further extended the exercise across different geographical and political constituencies.
The campaign’s activities in Oleh and Ozoro also demonstrated the participation of influential political figures from Delta South. Former Governor Okowa called for greater unity within the party and challenged members to work towards the ambitious target of securing more than two million votes for President Bola Tinubu and Governor Oborevwori.
The APC’s presentation of party flags to candidates contesting senatorial, federal constituency and state assembly positions further illustrated its intention to coordinate its campaign across the different elective offices. The party’s five-over-five political framework has become a prominent feature of its campaign organisation.
The mobilisation exercise continued in Warri South-West and Udu, before moving to Akwukwu-Igbo and Asaba on November 11. At the Akwukwu-Igbo rally, Oborevwori highlighted the importance of grassroots engagement and recalled Oshimili North’s electoral performance in the previous election. At the Asaba gathering, he spoke about infrastructure interventions in Oshimili South, including 54 completed roads and stormwater management projects.
These engagements provided the administration with opportunities to communicate its development activities directly to residents and acknowledge the contributions of local communities to the state’s political and economic progress.
The enthusiastic participation reported at the various campaign gatherings has become a prominent feature of the APC’s unfolding political activities. In Warri South-West, community leaders and stakeholders publicly acknowledged the administration’s development interventions, while party members in the Oshimili axis participated in the campaign’s local government engagements.
Such gatherings have provided a platform for interaction between government officials, elected representatives, traditional institutions, women, youths and other community stakeholders. The campaign’s statewide timetable, which extends to January 7, 2027, demonstrates the scale of the organisational exercise being undertaken by the party.
At the centre of Oborevwori’s political proposition is the MORE Plus agenda, an extension of the original M.O.R.E Agenda. Its emphasis on Meaningful Development, Opportunities for All, Realistic Reforms and Enhanced Peace and Security provides the framework for communicating the administration’s priorities.
The agenda places infrastructure, economic , education, healthcare, workers’ welfare and security within a broader development vision. MORE Plus also provides an opportunity to connect the administration’s ongoing programmes with its future commitments, particularly in areas where improved public services can make a direct difference to household livelihoods.
Infrastructure development remains a prominent feature of the administration’s activities. Road construction, rehabilitation, bridges, flyovers and urban renewal projects have featured across several parts of the state. The Asaba and Warri metropolitan areas, Ughelli, Agbor and other communities have benefited from different infrastructure interventions. Equally significant is the attention given to riverine communities, where improved transportation facilities can strengthen commercial activities and expand access to education and healthcare.
The Trans-Warri/Ode-Itsekiri Road represents an important intervention in the effort to improve connectivity in previously underserved areas.
The administration’s 2026 budget of N1.664 trillion also reflects its development priorities. Substantial provisions were made for infrastructure, education, healthcare and other essential sectors, including N450 billion for urban highways and rural and riverine roads, N105.086 billion for education and N50.067 billion for healthcare.
These allocations underscore the government’s stated commitment to sustained investment in physical infrastructure and human capital development. The proposed 2027 budget, estimated at slightly above N1.2 trillion, similarly provides a framework for continuing interventions in infrastructure, electricity, security, education and economic empowerment.
Workers’ welfare has equally featured in the administration’s policy direction. The introduction of a 13th-month salary package for public servants, alongside the administration’s attention to salary and pension obligations, represents an important aspect of its public-sector welfare programme.
These interventions are particularly relevant at a time when the national economic environment continues to place pressure on household incomes. The government’s approach recognises the contribution of public servants to effective service delivery and the importance of maintaining a motivated workforce.
Grassroots economic empowerment is another important component of the MORE Plus agenda. The administration has highlighted a N5 billion intervention targeting 100,000 small-scale business owners across the state’s 500 wards, alongside additional support programmes for vulnerable residents.
The initiatives are designed to extend development opportunities to traders, artisans, farmers, market women and small-business operators. By focusing on economic inclusion, the administration seeks to complement major infrastructure investments with interventions that support household livelihoods and local enterprise.
Education and healthcare remain central to the administration’s human capital development priorities. Interventions in primary healthcare, maternal and child health services, hospital infrastructure and educational institutions are intended to improve access to essential public services.
The governor has also highlighted the participation of 17,500 Delta students in the Nigerian Education Loan Fund programme, an initiative that expands access to educational financing. In technical and vocational education, the upgrading of facilities and provision of modern equipment are important components of the effort to equip young people with practical skills and improve their employment prospects.
The political realignment between Delta State and the Federal Government has also become an important feature of the administration’s development narrative. Oborevwori has consistently explained that his decision to join the APC followed consultations with political stakeholders and was informed by the potential benefits of closer cooperation with the Federal Government.
The governor has particularly highlighted increased revenue allocations and opportunities for collaboration in infrastructure, education, electricity and security. The relationship between the state and the Federal Government provides an important platform for pursuing development partnerships and addressing challenges that require cooperation across different levels of government.
As the APC campaign progresses, the participation of prominent political leaders, elected representatives, women and youth organisations, traditional institutions and grassroots stakeholders continues to shape its activities.
The party’s engagement across local government areas provides opportunities to communicate its programmes, introduce candidates and discuss community development priorities. The planned presidential campaign rally in Asaba on December 12 and the scheduled statewide campaign finale in Orerokpe on January 7, 2027, are further milestones in the campaign timetable. The exercise reflects the scale of political organisation currently taking place across Delta State.
Ultimately, the 2027 political season presents an important opportunity to examine Delta State’s development trajectory, the administration’s MORE Plus agenda and the changing political landscape under the APC. Oborevwori’s administration has placed infrastructure, economic empowerment, workers’ welfare, education and healthcare at the centre of its public policy narrative, while the party’s expanding campaign activities have brought these issues into wider public discussion.
The participation of established political leaders and grassroots organisations has also given the campaign a broad organisational dimension. As the process continues, the people of Delta State will have the opportunity to assess the administration’s record, examine the programmes of competing political platforms and determine the leadership and development priorities they consider most important for the state’s future.
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Wilfred Latimore Oghenesivbe, Esq, is the Director-General of the Delta State Bureau for Orientation and Communications, Governor’s Office Asaba.