BY SIMON EBEGBULEM

BENIN – EDO State Professionals in the Diaspora, weekend, appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan to appoint the former Special Adviser to the President, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, as the minister representing the state.

In a statement by Prof.Tautau Uwangbue, the group argued that apart from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state, the people of the state need a sound and qualified person to be made a minister, regretting that the people of the state “have not benefited from the previous ministerial appointments that were given to some individuals in the state due to the fact that they lacked the vision to lead.”

The statement recalled that  since the inception of democracy in 1999, Edo North senatorial zone, where Ihonvbere hails from, was the only area that had not enjoyed a ministerial position, as Edo Central had produced four  Ministers in the persons of Chief Tony Anenih, Elder Odion Ugbesia,  Mr Mike Onolemhenhe and Dr Itoto, while the South had Gen Godwin Abbe and Dr Chris Ogienwonyi, who is currently the Minister of State for Works.

“So as professionals, we want the best for our state. Oshiomhole is working and we want some body who will work at the same pace with him at the national level. Apart from that, Prof Ihonvbere is one man who we have  missed his wealth of experience in our state due to the politics of god fathers.

“We recalled that in 2007 guber primaries of the PDP, he ran against Prof.Oserhiemen Osunbor and lost due to the fact that the primary was skewed in favour of Osunbor,” the group added.