The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, on Monday, appointed 34 Senior Special Assistants and 152 Special Assistants from five Local Government Areas in the Edo South Senatorial District of the state.

The governor charged the new appointees to be bearers of truth and complement the government’s efforts at driving development at the grassroots.

Obaseki said the appointees were selected from Ikpoba-Okha, Oredo, Ovia South West, Ovia North East, and Orhionmwon LG councils in the district, noting that appointees from the other two LGAs that make up the district will be announced soon as the party finalises on the selection of credible members that are worthy of the appointments.

The governor said, “Out of the seven Local Government Areas from Edo South, we are appointing SSAs and SAs from five local government areas. The reason is that we are trying to foster unity and inclusiveness in our party so that all are given the opportunity to participate.

“Those local governments we have not accepted their list are those where work is still in progress. We are insisting that the leaders must agree and confirm that the people who are nominated are people who are faithful, worked for the party, and have the capacity to work for the governor.

“One of the key criteria for appointment is that you must be resident in that local government as you can’t be a political appointee in absentia. Gone are the days when you get an appointment and go abroad, it can’t happen again. You have to be a resident of your local government. You need to be there to know what is going on so as to help us develop the local government and State,” he said.

He further noted, “You all are my appointees, you work for me, not the local government. We are working in all the wards in Edo State; we have teachers, health workers, and many others as we work together to develop the state. We want people on the ground to communicate to the people what we are doing and also want feedback from them.

“This is not a fancy appointment but involves real work this time around. You have SSAs who you work with and will coordinate your activities and give me a monthly report of what is going on. You must show me your contacts and relationship with the people and show me the medium of communication to ensure a real impact in all the wards.

“You all belong to our party as your appointment is based on the fact that you belong to our party and must show commitment towards that. You must promote the interest of the party. The people have decided to follow our party and it showed at the last local government election in the state.

“If you were SSAs or SAs in the last dispensation, the work is different this time around because there is a lot of work to do for the party. We know that you are ready to help the party to win the governorship election next year. The interest of the party is towards the 21st of September next year,” he said. (The PUNCH)

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