Delta Without Debt: Inside Oborevwori’s No-Loan Infrastructure Push
By PAULINA NZERUBE
THE Delta State Government on Christmas Day reiterated that citizen welfare and infrastructure delivery remain the twin pillars of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori’s administration. The assurance came from the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Sir Festus Ahon, who received the Delta State Executive Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) at his Ughelli residence on 25 December 2025.
Ahon framed the administration as a model of fiscal restraint, stressing that ongoing capital projects and social interventions are being funded without borrowing—an unusual position at a time many sub-national governments are turning to domestic and external credit markets to close infrastructure gaps. His claim that the government has avoided loans altogether invites scrutiny, given Nigeria’s broader economic climate of high interest rates, inflationary pressure, and constrained FAAC allocations. If validated, Delta would stand out among oil-producing states where project financing often blends Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), federation allocations, and structured debt instruments.
The CPS also advanced a bold performance comparison, asserting that the Oborevwori administration has delivered more in two years than some states achieved in eight. While the claim is politically potent, it raises questions of measurement: project count, project value, social impact, or completion timelines. Public policy analysts note that such declarations often omit variables like population size, project scope, inherited infrastructure, and per-capita impact, all critical to assessing governance outcomes. Nonetheless, the emphasis on “enduring projects” aligns with a governance narrative aimed at long-term infrastructure viability rather than short-cycle political optics.
NUJ Chairman, Comrade Churchill Oyowe, acknowledged the government’s recent Christmas support to all NUJ chapels, describing it as unprecedented in reach and inclusivity. Yet the union used the visit to revive pending institutional welfare requests—specifically a utility bus and a 200KVA transformer for the NUJ Secretariat. The demands underscore the infrastructural fragility facing media institutions even in resource-rich states and highlight the strategic importance of state-press relations beyond ceremonial goodwill.
Ahon appealed for sustained media partnership, linking peace to development acceleration. The overt messaging signals a deliberate effort to formalise a cooperative social contract between the government and the press, particularly in a politically plural state like Delta, where ethnic balance, resource narratives, and public trust intersect sharply. For governance watchers, the moment reveals a state administration attempting to project capacity, claim fiscal independence, and secure media legitimacy simultaneously.
