Hundreds of youths including men and women from Edo Central Senatorial district Friday took over major streets in Benin City to register their anger and displeasure over Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s recent cabinet appointments because no candidate from Edo Central (Esan land) got a position.
Esan is the stronghold of Chief Tony Anenih, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) powerhouse. The district however voted massively for the Governor in the July Governorship poll.
Oshiomhole Wednesday swore-in three (3) politicians to key political offices in the state – Professor Julius Ihonvbere Edo North, Secretary to the State Government (SSG); Chief of Staff (COS), Honourable Patrick Obahiagbon Edo South; and Deputy Chief of Staff, Mr. Aliyu Yakubu (Edo North). Princess Theresa Erediauwa, who retained her position as the focal person and Executive Director, Millennium Development Goals (MDG), is also from Edo south.
The protesters under the umbrella of the Esan Youth Movement (EYM) stormed the compound housing the state council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to register their displeasure with placards and solidarity songs.
The Esan group with placards bearing “Esan people are not fools” Share positions equitably”, “Esan people demand equal rights” and “Comrade where is our vote” amongst other inscriptions decried what they termed injustice and gross marginalization of Esan people from political offices in Edo State.
Steven Amedu, the group’s spokesman and Steve Okougbo, Secretary General, noted that political appointments are supposed to be shared evenly among the three senatorial districts adding that they have been silent on the marginalisation on the ground that the governor had in the past accused the senatorial district of voting against him during his first term.
The spokesman urged the governor to adhere strictly to the principle of federal character as it relates to appointments from the three senatorial districts since the people of the senatorial district voted massively to elect him in the last Governorship election.
“What is supposed to be for us has been taking from us. Our hearts are bleeding and we have been marginalised. We cannot sit down and watch people taking our rights from us and this is something we have to address,” Amedu said.
“Today we are here to cry out to the people of the state on the injustice meted on Esan people as it regards to marginalisation. As it is today, in Oshiomhole first tenure we kept quite because he told us that the Esan people did not vote for him but now in the last election we mobilised to give him the mandate and now he has done the first round of appointments and what we have seen is that the key position have been taking by Edo north and Edo south people,” the secretary general enthused.
TheWill
No comments:
Post a Comment