Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has announced the appointment of Professor Julius Ihonvbere as Chairman, Strategic Planning Team, Governor’s Office.
A statement by the Secretary to the State Government, Osarodion Ogie which made the disclosure, also named Chief Osaro Idah as Special Adviser on Political and Community Matters and Mr. Crusoe Osagie as Special Adviser, Media and Communication Strategy to the governor.
Others are Prince Joe Okojie as Special Adviser, Agriculture and Food Security Programme, Mr. Joseph Eboigbe as Special Adviser on Economic and Development Planning, Hon Gowon Yakubu, Special Adviser on Special Duties and Dr Joan Oviawe, Special Adviser on Basic Education.
A statement from the Governor’s office noted that the appointments were in line with a promise made during an interview with Channels TV, which he granted after the Appeal Court judgment in Edo State, to announce major political appointments in his administration.
The statement revealed that the appointments were a call to duty, sacrifice and leadership for the new Special Advisers and that the inauguration ceremony would take place on Friday the 23rd of June, this year at the EXCO chambers of the Edo State Government House.
Also, in a bid to reposition sports in Edo State, Governor Godwin Obaseki has declared that each of the 18 Local Government Areas of the state would have a sporting arena, adding that facilities at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium would be repositioned to meet international standards and host international events.
Receiving executive members of the amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees, Edo State Council, led by its Chairman, Comrade Julius Erharuyi at the Edo State Government House in Benin City, the governor stated that Ogbemudia Stadium would be refurbished this year.
He said: “We will improve on what we have as a state and ensure we revive sports to enhance its development in the state and country at large.
“Every local government area must have a sporting arena. We do not need to buy a land but can look for a school that has vast land and redesign the pitch, put a racetrack, and, as money comes, upgrade it to meet international standards.
A law had been drafted as part of the recommendation from the sports workshop held in the state, continued Governor Obaseki, who also stressed that his administration would set up a sports commission that would create avenues for only those experts in sports to contribute to the development of sports in the state.”
In his remarks, Erharuyi appreciated the governor’s policies for developing the state, repositioning sports, as well as the financial commitment to Bendel Insurance Football Club of Benin and sports in general.
“We request that an institution to academically improve our sportsmen and women be created in the state and the need to provide more medical facilities, personnel, and drugs for the stadium cannot be underestimated,” he said.
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