ABOH/Nigeria: The condition of the road linking Inyi Community in Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta State to other parts of the area has triggered a political dispute between the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in the state and Lucky Dikadi, a Senior Special Assistant to Governor Sheriff Oborevwori.
The disagreement followed a visit to Inyi by a team of the NDC led by Hon. Ejaife Odebala, during which the party drew attention to the poor state of the community’s only accessible road and other infrastructure challenges.
The NDC described Inyi as an important agricultural community with the potential to contribute significantly to food production in Delta State, arguing that poor road access could undermine economic activities and the movement of farm produce.
Odebala questioned the level of government attention to the community, particularly the condition of the road, and said the situation was difficult to reconcile with the contributions of Inyi and its people to the political development of the state.
The party’s concerns were reinforced by its State Deputy Chairman, Dr. Ossai Sylvanus Annantram, an indigene of Ndokwa East, who in an open letter dated August 20, 2026, appealed to the Okpala-Uku of Inyi to use his position to encourage political leaders from the community to support efforts to attract development to the area.
Annantram specifically identified the Inyi road, school facilities, healthcare infrastructure and other basic amenities as areas requiring urgent attention.
He also criticised Dikadi over what he described as his frequent attacks on opposition parties, urging him to deploy his political influence towards addressing developmental concerns in his community rather than focusing primarily on political disagreements.
According to Annantram, political affiliations should not become a barrier to the collective interests of Ndokwa people, stressing the need for political actors to promote development, unity and peaceful coexistence.
Dikadi, however, rejected the NDC’s criticism, describing the visit and the video of the road released by the opposition as political propaganda,
He said the NDC team was aware that the Oborevwori administration was already working towards addressing the road problem but chose to use its condition for what he called “cheap propaganda.”
“The NDC team that went to do that video to mock the deplorable state of my community road at Inyi knows that Governor Sheriff Oborevwori is working; they are only looking for cheap propaganda,” Dikadi said.
The governor’s aide maintained that his position in government did not diminish his commitment to the interests of his community, saying his loyalty to the governor and responsibility to his people could be pursued simultaneously.
“As an aide to His Excellency, my loyalty to the Governor and my allegiance to my people go hand in hand,” he said.
Dikadi further argued that the controversy had, in effect, highlighted an issue he had already been raising within government circles, expressing confidence that the Inyi road would receive attention from the state government.
He cited infrastructure projects executed by the Oborevwori administration across Delta State as evidence of its commitment to addressing longstanding development challenges, insisting that no community would be deliberately excluded from the government’s development agenda.
Dikadi described the NDC’s intervention as “cheap political drama” and said he remained confident that the Inyi road was already on the government’s radar.
He subsequently challenged the opposition party to return to Inyi when the project is completed and join residents of the community in witnessing its commissioning by Governor Oborevwori.
