Delta Mourns ‘Selfless Servant’ As NUJ Pays Tribute To Dr Otumara

Rita Enemuru, Reporting 

WARRI — The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Delta State Council, has described the late Chief Dr. Joseph Sisanmi Otumara as a “selfless servant of the people” following his death, which the union said had “deprived Delta State of an experienced leader.”

In a statement signed by Chairman Comrade Churchill Oyowe and Acting Secretary Comrade Josephine Omodior, the NUJ said it received the news of his passing with “profound shock and deep sadness.”

Dr. Otumara, a three-time Chairman of Warri South Local Government Council, hailed by the union as “the first and only three-time council chairman in Nigeria”,  also served as Commissioner for Housing under former Governor James Ibori, and as Commissioner for Health throughout the eight-year administration of Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan.

At the time of his death, he was the pioneer Chairman of the Warri/Uvwie and Environs Development Agency (WUEDA), a position he held under the current administration of Rt Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori.

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The NUJ recalled with admiration his role in transforming the state’s health sector, noting that as Commissioner for Health he was instrumental in the “conception, implementation and success” of several landmark healthcare initiatives.

These included the Free Under-Five Healthcare Programme, the Free Maternal Healthcare Programme, and the annual Free Rural Healthcare Programme, “through which thousands of Deltans and non-Deltans benefitted from free medical consultations, surgeries and treatments for various ailments, including cataracts, fibroids and other health conditions.”

The union also credited his “passion, dedication and tireless commitment” with helping to complete and grow the Delta State University Teaching Hospital (DELSUTH), Oghara, where “successful kidney transplant procedures, hip replacement surgeries and corrective surgeries for knocked knees” were carried out.

Beyond his public service record, the NUJ said Dr. Otumara was “widely respected for his humility, accessibility, compassion and uncommon dedication to the welfare of others,” adding: “His life was true to the belief that leadership is most meaningful when it is anchored on service to humanity.”

The council extended condolences to his family, the palace and people of Warri Kingdom, and the Delta State Government, praying that “Almighty God grants his departed spirit eternal rest and gives his loved ones the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.”