Press Release: Agbedeyi Desmond Urges Governor Okpebholo to Extend Higher Institutions to Riverine Ijaw Areas
Press Release / Community Bulletin
Date: May 6, 2025
From: Egbema Egberi Media
Agbedeyi Desmond Urges Governor Okpebholo to Extend Higher Institutions to Riverine Ijaw Areas
As Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, signs into law the bill establishing the Edo State College of Nursing, Health Sciences and Technology, calls are growing for the state government to extend similar educational development to the riverine Ijaw-speaking communities, especially the Egbema axis in Ovia South West Local Government Area.
Ijaw youth leader and development advocate, Agbedeyi Odimientimi Desmond, who is a principal lecturer at Delta State Polytechnic Ogwashi Uku has commended the governor’s initiative but emphasized that riverine communities have long suffered decades of neglect and marginalization, particularly in education and infrastructure.
“We welcome the establishment of the nursing college, but we must not ignore the systematic underdevelopment of our Ijaw communities. It is time the Egbema people benefit from similar institutions of higher learning,” Desmond stated.
He cited Delta State as a model, where higher institutions are fairly distributed across all three senatorial districts, ensuring that no ethnic or geographical group is left behind.
Desmond called on the Edo State Government—both the executive and legislative arms—to demonstrate equity by establishing tertiary institutions in the Ijaw heartlands of the state. He stressed that inclusive growth and balanced development are key to a united and progressive Edo.
This call reflects a growing demand for educational justice and infrastructural inclusion among riverine populations, who contribute meaningfully to the state’s economy but remain on the margins of development.
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