Follow Us on Google
The Mayor of Urhoboland, Eshanekpe Israel a.k.a Akpodoro has joined Nigerians to mourn the death of the Pa E.K. Clark whose death was announced Tuesday, saying the late former Minister of Information has left a vacuum that the South-South geopolitical zone may not be able to fill in decades to come.
Mayor Akpodoro’s message was contained in a statement he issued to newsmen in Abuja, Tuesday where he said the Federal Government should consider immortalising the man he described as the conscience of the Niger Delta people.
He said Chief Clark would be remembered for his consistency in his advocacy for a developed Niger Delta belt and her citizens, noting that it was the late former Minister who gave the once criminally marginalised region a voice.
He said Clark was dogged in his struggle for the emancipation of the region, a feat he noted the late leader of thought achieved before his demise.
“Pa Clark left an indelible mark in the sand of time. He would be remembered for his anti corruption crusade in Delta State, just like the late elderstatesman would be remembered for his roles in uniting and uplifting the people of South-South region through his chairmanship of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, (PANDEF) an organisation he used to stabilise the region setting it on the path of socio-economic recovery from years of plundering by successive military regimes at the dusk of the 20th century Nigeria,” he stated.
Akpodoro holds the late elderstateman in credit for the seeming infrastructure and human developments in the region through the Niger Delta Development Commission, (NDDC) which was his brainchild under the regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo. “Were it not for the fear of Pa Clark, NDDC wouldn’t have been created. He was a strong advocate for equity and social justice. Our region has lost a father without boundary, a mentor to all, advocate of truth and honesty and the protector of our region.
“While he lived, he had a special spot in his heart for the Urhobo nation owing to his love and respect for his mother who hailed from Urhoboland. He was an Urhobo man in all his endeavours. The people of Urhobo nation has lost a worthy son, brother and friend in the death of Chief Clark,” he said.
