2031: The promise of an ijaw governoship slot and the Weight of History
Since the creation of Delta State in 1991, the office of governor has rotated through familiar corridors, yet it has never rested in Ijaw hands. This is no accident of fortune. It is the outcome of numbers, alliances, and political geometry that has consistently placed the Ijaw — the state’s third largest ethnic group, yet its most riverine and dispersed — at a disadvantage.
We have been the bride at every coalition, but never the groom. Our creeks deliver the oil that funds the state, yet our people are told to wait our turn while others take theirs. At times, we were divided by local rivalries. At times, we were pacified by lesser appointments. At times, we were asked to trade unity for survival, and so our collective voice was muted. The governorship did not elude us; it was kept from us by design, by distraction, and by our own moments of disarray.
But history is not a prison it is a torchlight, a compass, a lesson. And 2031 demands that we read it plainly and we see with it clearly to find our destination and political destiny.
Let us be sober in our understanding: the 2031 governorship opening is a privilege, not a constitutional establishment. It is not written in the 1999 Constitution. It is a political arrangement of concession, born of negotiation, aimed at balancing long-standing imbalances amongst the ethnic nations in Delta. It is benevolence, not entitlement. It can be given, and it can be withdrawn if we prove reckless.
The year 2031 is drawing near. For the Ijaw people, it may be the most important political moment since our ancestors first gathered at the sound of the gong. The governorship of Delta State — a position long kept from us by quiet arrangements and political convenience — is now expectedly within reach. Yet we must not be fooled.
We live today in a time of False Unity. It is a unity spoken of at public dinners and printed on campaign posters, but it is empty at heart. In this atmosphere, the Ijaw man is asked to forget his history, to trade his rights for small favours, to clap while his future drifts away.
Let this be clear: the Ijaw must not be bought, and the Ijaw must not sell.
We must not trade the suffering of our mothers in oil-stained villages for promises that will be broken by morning. We must not exchange the memory of our ancestors for a government appointment, nor give up our language and culture for the praise of others. What use is a position today if we lose our identity tomorrow? The market is full of those who profit from our division.
The lesser offices now marketed and embraced by gluttonous Ijaw politicians can only dislocate the big dream.A commissioner here, a board seat there — these are crumbs scattered to keep us from the banquet. They are bright traps set on the road to the real prize. If we feast on them, we will wake hungry in 2032.
Therefore, the Ijaw must decide wisely. This is a door that does not open twice in a generation, and we must not miss the opportunity. Sentiment without strategy will fail us. Anger without alignment will scatter us. If we choose wrongly now, we may write another thirty years of waiting with our own hands.
Our focus on the 2031 governorship must rise above both intra and inter-ethnic betrayals. It must be insulated against every form of manipulation. The old script is known: set Ijaw against Ijaw, pit clan against clan, then invite outsiders to broker a peace that costs us the crown. This time, the shield must be higher. No gossip should break our ranks. No sponsored faction should speak for the whole. No stranger should choose our candidate for us.
Let the Ijaw put on both the thinking cap and the psychological cap.We must see the bait before we bite. We must read the room before we clap. We must avoid the bad spots — the old quarrels, the bought loyalties, the short-term deals — that cause a people to miss the target by an inch and lose it by a mile.
The Ijaw must not mess up this benevolence by getting into juicy traps. Privilege withdrawn becomes precedent. If we treat concession as carelessness, those who concede will remember. Future generations will ask why we traded a stool for soup.
Even if the worst should happen — even if Delta State itself should break apart under political strain — the Ijaw purpose must not break with it. A change of borders does not have to mean a change of direction. If maps are redrawn, let unity of vision guide us. If regions are divided, let _unity of purpose hold us together. If conflict comes, let _unity of goals be our answer.
So, Ijaw people, prepare yourselves. Do not let smooth words send you to sleep while your inheritance is taken. Do not let any kinsman, tempted by quick money, trade away the future of our children. 2031 is not a gift we are being given. It is a right long delay, and it must be claimed through focus, sacrifice, and loyalty to ourselves.
Pursue this aim with the strength of the tide. Pursue it in hard times. Pursue it when friends fall away. Pursue it even if the ground shifts beneath us. People who remember their past will not be led to their own ruin.
In 2031, the Ijaw must not ask quietly. The Ijaw must state their case.The Ijaw must not negotiate away their future. The Ijaw must lead.And above all, the Ijaw must remember.
