Open Letter To His Excellency, RT Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, The Executive Governor of Delta State
Topic:
Translucent Subterfuge:
Why Government Empowerment Efforts Go Down the Drain
By Wilson Macaulay
“Those who make transparent empowerment impossible will make translucent subterfuge inevitable.”
Your Excellency, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, the Executive Governor of Delta State, as the Federal Government in collaboration with the States
initiates its bold plan to empower 1,000 persons per ward nationwide, the hope in the eyes of the people is unmistakable — but so is the lingering fear that history may once again repeat itself. In principle, this initiative has the capacity to reach over 8 million Nigerians and serve as a powerful tool for reducing poverty, stimulating local enterprise, and restoring dignity to everyday citizens.
In Delta State, your M.O.R.E Agenda has shown clearly that your government means well. You have continued to push policies aimed at reaching the grassroots, uplifting the vulnerable, and creating sustainable economic pathways for youths and women alike. However, the most dangerous threat to these good intentions lies not in the policies themselves, but in the hands of those assigned to implement them.
Delta’s Dilemma: A Familiar Pattern
Across Delta — from. Ughelli ,Sapele to Burutu, Bomadi to Uvwie, Okpe ,Isoko South to Ethiope East — communities have become familiar with the cycle of hope and disappointment. Promises are made, forms are distributed, names are collected — yet the benefits are hijacked by gatekeepers: political cronies, compromised coordinators, and local middlemen who divert empowerment slots for personal gain.
“They call it empowerment, but it ends up in the pockets of the privileged,” says Comrade Freeborn Ejodephia, a grassroots youth mobilizer from Ughelli South LGA.
“We attend verification exercises, fill forms, join cooperatives — but when it’s time for disbursement, we’re told our names are not on the list.”
This story is not isolated. In Warri South West, a young fisherwoman, Mrs. Ruth Kemekedomene , lamented how she was part of a cassava processing empowerment scheme launched in 2023. “I was trained, I even spent my own money for transport to the venue every day. Till today, nothing has come to me,” she says.
A Call for Transparency and Accountability
Your Excellency, it is important to restate: the government has good intentions. But without deliberate transparency and direct monitoring from your office, even this promising empowerment plan will end in fiasco.
To ensure that your vision for Delta does not fall victim to translucent subterfuge, the following measures are humbly recommended:
1. Constitute Independent Empowerment Monitoring Committees in each LGA — including members from civil society, youth groups, and traditional institutions.
With local government identification certificate as one of the requirements for eligibility to benefit.
2. Publish beneficiary lists publicly after verification, to ensure transparency and build trust.
3. Use digital tracking and unique identity verification to reduce duplication, fraud, and ghost beneficiaries.
4. Involve credible community-based organizations (CBOs) who know the real people on the ground, not just political allies.
Let History Not Repeat Itself
It would be a tragedy for this golden opportunity to go the way of past programs. As Deltans, we believe in your leadership and your passion for the people. But if gatekeepers continue to control access to empowerment, your administration’s most impactful efforts may be buried under frustration, rumors, and resentment.
Let the empowerment be truly empowering. Let the selection be merit-based, not manipulated. Let the process be transparent, not transacted. And let the outcome be people-driven, not opaque system.
In Conclusion
Your Excellency, the road to prosperity must be paved not only with policies but with accountability, equity, and courage. If the right people receive the right support, the ripple effect across Delta State will be revolutionary. But if the wrong hands control the taps, then the story of translucent subterfuge will remain our sad reality.
The time to break the cycle is now. On Renewed Hope for MORE AGENDA we stand.
Wilson Macaulay is a Journalist and public Affairs Commentator, Anchor of the Column: Titled The Prism of the Ruled 08030886420, 08108097838 what’sapp only
