BY DAYO JOHNSON
AKURE- Politicians and traditional rulers in Ondo State have intensified their lobbies to ensure that their candidates make the last list of the commissioner nominees, even as the screening of the 16 nominees submitted to the State House of Assemby by Governor Olusegun Mimiko  is scheduled to hold any time from this week.

Last week the state governor Mimiko forwarded the list of the nominees to the House for consideration while four councils were left out.

The lobbies are said to be intense from traditional rulers and opinion leaders in the four council areas of Ese Odo, Owo, Okitipupa and Ose where nominees are yet to be included in the list before the House.

Investigations revealed that the stakeholders from the four council areas are still discussing and are yet to agree on whom to represent them in the state executive council.

Meanwhile the list of 16 nominees is to be tabled before the House today ahead of their screening.

The inability a good number of the nominees to send their Curricula Vitae, CV, to the House last week delayed their screening.

As at yesterday, sources said only two of the nominees were yet to send their CV to the House.

The lucky ones included the former Chief Press Secretary to the immediate past Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kayode Akinmade, the son of the  leader of the Afenifere, Ayodeji Falae, the present Chairman of the state Law Commission, Chief Sola Ebiseni and two women Mrs Yinka Alabi and Mrs Margret Akinsuroju.

Falae’s son contested for the National Assembly primaries of the party but lost while Akinsuroju was a former Commissioner under the immediate past Governor Olusegun Agagu.

Three former commissioners equally made the list and they include the former Agriculture Commissioner Mr. Remi Olatubora, Sports Commissioner, Alhaji Yekini Olanipekun and Budget and Economic Planning, Akin Adaramola

Meanwhile, the governor was said to have met with all the former Commissioners recently where he offered some of them the post of Special Advisers and other political appointments if they failed to make the new list.

Meantime, the governor yesterday charged judges in the state judiciary to be mindful of the import of their oath and insulate themselves from unethical  practices  capable of negating  their neutrality and honesty.

The governor who spoke at the swearing-in ceremony of two new Judges; Justices Folarin Bamidele Adeyeye and Adeyemi Fasanmi in Akure,  asked judges to develop a thick skin against unprofessional and unethical practices.

Mimiko reminded them of the enormity of their tasks especially at a time when the nation’s democracy was facing many challenges.

With the inauguration of the new judges the number of judges in the State judiciary has risen to 17.