Governor Dickson Under Pressure For Plum Appointments

Less than a month after the swearing in of Governor Seriake Dickson as governor of Bayelsa State after the ouster of Timipre Sylva, there are strong indications that some powerful political blocs in the state are piling pressure on the new governor over appointments into cabinet positions and other plum jobs in the southsouth state in Nigeria.

The intrigues and pressure among the different political blocs have impeded the pace of governance as expected by anxious Bayelsans who are in dire need of change and accelerated development of the state.

Our sources in Yenagoa, the state capital, revealed that the scramble by the various groups for ‘lucrative’ cabinet positions is creating bad blood in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state.

To forestall the rancour, President Goodluck Jonathan has waded into the matter and called for a truce among the interest groups.

Our source further revealed that one of the blocs led by a traditional ruler from Bayelsa East Senatorial District, is insisting that his bloc gets seven cabinet positions based on the contribution of his camp to the realisation of the “Restoration Crusade” led by the governor.

The result of the intervention of President Jonathan was the appointment of Professor Allison Edmund Oguru, a neutral person to be the Secretary to the State Government (SSG).

Contrary to the earlier plan by the governor to declare a state of emergency in the educational sector, rehabilitation of schools has no commenced. This has been attributed to the current political intrigues and infighting among the various interest groups.

The governor has so far appointed 24 persons into various positions, the latest being the appointment of Mr.Joseph Aseimoah to replace the Accountant-General , Mr. Francis Okukuro in an acting capacity.

—Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt