By Hon. Kenneth C. Gbandi
Delta State stands at a defining moment in its political and developmental history. Endowed with oil wealth, strategic geography, and one of the most educated populations in the Niger Delta, the state should by now be a benchmark for sub-national development in Nigeria. Instead, when placed beside peer states of similar standing, Delta’s performance exposes a troubling gap between potential and reality. This is not a partisan critique, but a civic reflection on governance, leadership choices, and the cost of misplaced priorities.
For over two decades, Delta State has ranked among the top recipients of federal allocations. Annual budgets have consistently hovered between ₦450 billion and ₦700 billion in recent years, placing Delta in the same fiscal league as Rivers and Akwa Ibom. Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), however, tells a more sobering story. While Lagos has surpassed ₦50 billion monthly and Rivers and Akwa Ibom have steadily grown their IGR bases into the ₦20 – ₦30 billion annual range through deliberate reforms, Delta’s IGR has largely stagnated below its true capacity, despite a strong commercial base, oil service activity, and urban centers like Asaba, Warri, and Ughelli.
Infrastructure outcomes reflect the same pattern. Peer states with comparable revenues have invested aggressively in signature road corridors, functional public transport systems, industrial parks, and planned urban renewal. Akwa Ibom’s aviation and industrial investments, Edo’s road expansion and urban regeneration, and Rivers’ large-scale transport and healthcare projects provide visible, measurable reference points. In contrast, Delta’s infrastructural footprint remains fragmented projects announced without clear timelines, continuity, or long-term maintenance frameworks. The result is a state that spends heavily but struggles to show proportional impact.
Human capital indicators further deepen the concern. Delta has produced generations of professionals, academics, and entrepreneurs across Nigeria and the diaspora. Yet, education and healthcare outcomes have not translated into competitive advantages. Teaching hospitals and public schools remain under-optimized relative to budgetary commitments, while youth unemployment persists despite the state’s revenue profile. States that have prioritized skills development, technical education, and private-sector partnerships are now better positioned for a post-oil future. Delta, regrettably, continues to speak more about diversification than it executes.
This reality feeds into a broader national question: why does Nigeria keep happening to Nigerians? The answer lies less in policy documents and more in political culture. Governance failures are driven by shared greed among elites, an unrestrained hunger for power, and an unhealthy desire for worship and personal glorification. Too many leaders seek loyalty rather than legitimacy, praise rather than performance, and control rather than competence. When leadership becomes about being idolized instead of being accountable, public office loses its moral purpose.
Where we are today is a system where political survival often outweighs social impact, where budgets are passed without rigorous performance tracking, and where citizens are mobilized mainly during election seasons. Where we ought to be is a governance culture anchored on measurable outcomes kilometers of roads completed and maintained, hospitals that function to standard, schools that produce competitive graduates, and jobs created through deliberate economic planning.
As Nigeria moves toward 2027, the necessary pushback must be principled and disciplined. It must not revolve around personalities, godfathers, or sectional calculations. The defining question before every aspirant and incumbent should be simple: what is your report card? What did you promise, what did you deliver, and how did your stewardship tangibly improve lives?
The coming elections must mark a shift from emotional politics to evidence-based judgment. Citizens must insist that loyalty is earned through service, not demanded through patronage. Delta State does not lack resources, talent, or opportunity. What it requires is leadership that understands that power is a responsibility, not a reward, and public office is a trust, not a throne.
If we get this right, Delta State can still become what it was always meant to be, a leader among its peers, not merely in revenue receipts, but in real, lived development. As 2027 approaches, Nigerians must demand nothing less than governance that works, leadership that serves, and democracy that delivers.
Kenneth Chibuogwu Gbandi is a Nigerian diaspora leader, policy strategist, and media executive; former Senatorial Candidate for Delta North and former ADC National Deputy Chairman (Diaspora), renowned for championing diaspora voting, democratic reforms, and institutional accountability.
