Critics of the ministerial nominee from Delta State, Mrs Stella Okotete are promising a showdown ahead of her ministerial screening by the Senate on Tuesday morning following what they claimed as a conspiracy by senators from the state to give them attention.
However, Okotete’s supporters have urged the Senate not to listen to her critics who they accuse of playing bad-belle politics.
Hobnob News reports that Okotete, an executive director of the Nigerian Export-Import Bank, NEXIM has been the object of several petitions ranging from alleged forgery, disobedience of Senate orders and lately, violation of state character in her nomination.
Hobnob News reports that the three ethnic groups in Delta South Senatorial District, Ijaw, Isoko and Itsekiri have come together to opose her nomination on the claim that it robs them of what should have been their slot.
However, attempts by the ethnic champions from within the region to reach their representative in the Senate, Senator Joel Onowakpo according to sources have been largely unsuccessful. Instead of challenging her nomination, the APC leaders of Isoko, Ijaw and Itsekiri are fuming that Senator Onowakpo along the representative of Delta Central, Senator Ede Dafinone have been seen in pictures warming up to her.The third senator from Delta State, Senator Ned Nwoko, PDP, Delta North is also not reachable on pushing their case that the nomination is a violation of state character upon the fact that the state chairman of the APC, Elder Sobotie, governorship candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and now the nominee all come from the same local government area.
“Our senators have locked us out. Onowakpo is not protecting the interest of Delta South and Ned Nwoko who should have played opposition is keeping quiet, so our people are promising drama at the screening tomorrow (Tuesday),” one APC leader from Delta South told Hobnob News.Meanwhile, ahead of the ministerial screening, the leadership of the Nigeria Association for Public Opinion Research (NAFPOR), has called on the Nigerian Senate to ignore petitions against Mrs Stella Okotete who it described as one of the most refined Nigerians in public life.
“The Nigerian Senate is to fulfill the expectations of Nigerians and not to do the bidding of political hackers and merchants who are desperate to pull others down to climb”
They said the unguarded utterances and attacks against Delta State Ministerial nominee Mrs. Stella Okotete was an act of desperation by some elements who are desperate to achieve their parochial interest as their petitions do not represent public opinion. Speaking on behalf of the Group, the National Co-ordinator Mr. Benjamin Atu in a Press Statement on Monday faulted the actions of some individuals who are bent on fostering their personal bias for the Nigerian Senate to implement.
