The Ukodo Governor of Delta State now ‘Okodod’, By Enewaridideke Ekanpou

By: Enewaridideke Ekanpou

Reciprocity, long built into the philosophy of ‘Ekpeprefe-ekpoeprefeism’ by Timiebi Maika, is an age-long behavioural component of Ijaw people all over the world.This philosophy of Ijaw people was recently given its ideal place of occupation in Bomadi Local Government Area of Delta State on 15 April 2026 when Delta-Ijaws gathered in the headquarters of the local government area. Powered by Ijaw National Congress (INC) Worldwide and Delta-Ijaw Leaders (elected and appointed), it was a gathering that gave reciprocal verdict on the performance story of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori. The gathering also depicted the developmental expectations of the Delta Ijaws in futuristic outlines.These futuristic outlines traced as a proactive expectation are viewed as another strategy bound to strengthen the existing developmental bond and unity between His Excellency Rt.Hon. Sheriff F.O. Oborevwori and the Delta-Ijaws .

‘Jpclarkically’, the Ijaws have a predilection for deployment of indirection in their daily conversations. In their poetically cast pure original thoughts transliteration also characterises the daily communications of the Ijaws when particularly viewed from the creative perspective of Gabriel Okara in his seminal work THE VOICE where Ijaws bring their original thought patterns directly into the English Language in a manner that enriches English language and depicts the communicative uniqueness and richness of Ijaw English.This universally acknowledged metaphorical and ‘transliterative’ clothing of Ijaw people was incinerated when they collectively chose to give Governor Oborevwori the ‘Okodo’ delicacy – a delicacy that was equally extended to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. How the anglicised original poetic thoughts of the Ijaws flow and murder the grammar of English, creatively leaving in its place an unbeatable new English with its own grammatical structures, is discarded. So the original communicative rules of Ijaw people could be broken without cultural twinges when it bordered on a state governor and the Nigerian president?

Over communicative clarity and unalloyed support, the Delta-Ijaws quickly ended their pact with indirection and transliteration as their true culturally binding communicative devices on 15 April 2026 in homage to their celebrated culinary skill. As a signal of the end of their communicative pact, the Delta-Ijaws gave the Delta State Governor the Okodo delicacy – an okodo delicay viewed as the most delicious arrival from the continentally sophisticated Ijaw cuisine far beyond the culinary skill of Hilda Baci the two-time Guinness World Record winner.

Culturally drawn from the culinary sophistication of the Delta-Ijaws, the Okodo was specially prepared with antelope, fresh fishes and plantains in a manner Baci would not be able to detect the ingredient-combination despite her widely applauded culinary excellence.The preparation and presentation of this Okodo delicacy was preceded by a critical appraisal of the development strides of the Delta State Governor in key areas of infrastructural development, educational advancement through yearly bursary awards and scholarships for students of Delta State origin in tertiary institutions of learning and political inclusiveness through geographic extension of the borders of political appointment.

The Government of Governor Oborevwori came into being in 2023 after he had providentially survived thirty eight court cases targeted to truncate his governorship dream.The developmental statistics collated from 2023 till date which include completed projects and ongoing projects like the Ayakoromo bridge and other projects recently approved, the position of the Ijaws is that Governor Oborevwori is developmentally friendly to the Delta-Ijaws. Reciprocally, he should be given a befitting Okodo bound to keep him on the dining table longer than the ‘meal-partakers’ captured in Chinua Achebe’s THINGS FALL APART where the partakers of the meal can not see each other on different ends of the table until the food has begun to thin out. That was when friendly pleasantries of ‘are you on this dining table too?’ began to invade the air. The Okodo for the Delta State Governor is specially prepared and seasoned with ingredients in quantity and quality envisioned to keep him energised and busy until it is 2031. It is the traditional version of the ‘Izonised’ caffeine built into the Okodo, devoid of any side effect however it is consumed.

Towards energy-boosting, energy-recovery and sustainability of the development projects of Governor Oborevwori in Delta State, he needs an energy booster from deliciously prepared food.The Governor needs to be politically treated to a very rich food that has the potential to expel hunger and thirst until he has accomplished his two terms.

Because Governor Oborevwori has proved himself as a development giant in relation to the Ijaws, he deserves re-election. Because he deserves re-election, the Ijaws have given him Okodo for the sustainability of his developmental projects across the state. By the public presentation of this Okodo, Delta Ijaws have given the Delta State Governor the opportunity to go for second tenure. It was a consensual Okodo from the Delta-Ijaws, pointing to the fact that they have no other governorship candidate than Oborevwori. For the Ijaws Governor Oborevwori has no poltical rival in the next election.

Every tide has a geometrically marked return journey – geographically demarcated by ebb tide and full-tide. However a tide flows, it must return at a marked time. For the tide to flow for a reasonably long time, it requires certain rituals to be activated. The political tide of Governor Oborevwori cannot flow without some necessary rituals. To guarantee the flow of this tide, Delta-Ijaws have performed two rituals. The first ritual is the Okodo just presented to the governor. The second ritual is the Izonebimiewei ( the one who showers good things on Ijaw) conferred on the governor by the Council of Ijaw Traditional Rulers. The target of these two rituals is to activate the process for the flow of the tide. Now the political tide can only flow and return in 2031. With these two rituals performed collectively at Bomadi on 15 April 2026, the political tide of Governor Oborevwori in Delta State can now flow and return only in 2031. At the presidential level the tide will equally flow and return only in 2031.

Politically, the sustainability path has been ritualistically cleared for Governor Oborevwori and President Tinubu. Timiebi Maika’s philosophy of ‘Ekpeprefe-ekpoeprefeism’, anglicised as reciprocation, has been activated and invoked by the Delta-Ijaws. It means Oborevwori and Tinubu have ritually been given the visa to journey developmentally until it is 2031.

History is always a memorable teacher in any space inhabited by man. For purposes of historical exactitude as a reference point likely to be drawn on by researchers from time to time, it must be categorically stated here that the political ritual was meticulously carried out by a masterful team of ritualistic officers made up of Rt. Hon. Dr.Julius Pondi ( a representative of Burutu Federal constituency in the House of Representatives) who moved the motion for the endorsement of Governor Oborevwori’s re-election, Hon. Oboro Preyor (member, Delta State House of Assembly representing Bomadi constituency) who seconded the motion, Rt. Hon. Emomotimi Dennis Guwor ( speaker, Delta State House of Assembly) who put the endorsement motion into a voice vote for general acceptance, His Royal Majesty, Elder Captain Joseph Timiyan (JP), PhD, the King of Ogulagha Kingdom/Chairman of Council of Ijaw Traditional Rulers who gave the Delta State Governor the Izonebimiewei award on behalf of all Ijaw traditional rulers and Professor Benjamin Ogele Okaba (President Ijaw National Congress) who presented the welcome address on behalf of the Delta-Ijaws and resonantly echoed the need for completion of the Torugbene-Ojobo Road, Ayakoromo bridge, Omadino-Okerenkoko-Kokodiagbene-Escravos Road and Aladja-Ogbe-Ijoh Road after a very loud commendation of the governor”s already completed development projects in the Ijaw areas.

Rituals vary. Variations in rituals depend chiefly on the worldview of the individual or community and the prevailing circumstances. To confront and stifle dictatorship in any formation, Wole Soyinka recommends a ritualisation process for the suffocated masses. For Soyinka on the back of his book, THE MAN DIED, ‘I believe that from the moment that power is deemed culpable in any way, each family should, in place of, or after its morning regulation prayers, make a ritual of throwing their breakfast slop at a pinned-up photograph of the symbol of power before going out to earn a living under an insupportable system. Every morning religiously…’
For me, towards the survival and sustainability of a good government in continuum, the Okodo ritual performed by the Delta-Ijaws should be replicated in any state or country where good governance is demonstrably at work, particularly, in Delta State that caters to the infrastructural and educational needs of all Deltans.

A known phenomenon in our society attestable by any person remains that whenever two things are agreeably conflated like a confluence, the resultant joy/benefit is always immeasurable because mutualism is implied and embedded in the agreeable conflation. With the Delta-Ijaw Okodo now added to the Ukodo of Delta State, the Ijaws have become visible stakeholders in the Ukodo of Governor Oborevwori. Ritually bound to the ‘Okodod’ Ukodo of Delta State, it would be traditionally suicidal for any Delta-Ijaw to stray from this ritualistic path like straying Fulani cattle. because the collective political ‘Ekian’ has been accepted by everybody. From whatever angle it is now viewed – considering the ideological and political miscibility of ‘Okodo’ and ‘Ukodo’ – it would be a political kamikaze for any Delta-Ijaw who may be tempted by political frogs to yield to being deployed as a defilement tool of this collective ritual.

Dr. Ekanpou writes from Akparemogbene, Delta State