Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki said yesterday that he has requested wards and council areas of the state to submit names of people to be nominated into his state executive council (exco).

He also explained that constituting the exco had been delayed because of the restructuring of the state civil service to make it more efficient.

Obaseki stated these to State House Correspondents after a meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

He said having restructured the civil service and introduced technology, he is now ready for the political class to give the needed political direction to the administration.

“Well, you see I spent the first four years as governor. So, I know what the challenges of governance are. We spent the last six months trying to restructure process of government, particularly the civil service, because no matter how great a cabinet is, if the government and the functions of government are not operating properly, the executive cannot function optimally.

“So, the last six months, we’ve tried to redefine the structures of governance, working through every layer of the civil service, define the roles, the responsibilities, trying to understand the resources available, and putting in place key performance indicators and scorecards for every MDA in government

“And this we did, such that the civil servants have no excuse to say they couldn’t do what they’re doing because of political interference.  “So, we’ve tried to keep politics out of government in the last seven months, to redefine the processes, the structures and the service delivery criteria for government.

“Now that we have done that, we now hired a whole crop of civil and public servants. We have about 1,500 of them we have hired, and we’re introducing technology. We have, perhaps one of the best training facilities in the country. And we are now ready for the political class, for the commissioners, to now step into government and do what they’re supposed to do and give political direction to the process of government,” he said.

Asked about the timeframe for the nomination of the commissioners, he stated: “Well, as I speak, as I speak, I have mandated wards and local governments to give me nominations. The nominations are coming in from the wards and the local governments. And the selection team is being put place to screen these candidates for submission to maybe before passing the names to the state House of Assembly.”

Revealing the reason for his meeting with Prof. Gambari, Obaseki said it was over stolen Benin artifacts that are to be returned from abroad, saying that the state government in collaboration with partners are setting up a museum for them in the state.

He expressed the hope that when completed, the museum would be a tourist attraction and source of revenue for the state.

“I just decided to pop in to see the Chief of Staff and to just touch base on a few issues, particularly as it relates to the artefacts.

“I’m sure you know that we’ve been in conversations with the Federal Government on the artefacts. Lots of Benin artworks that are in Europe and the Americas.

“We’ve had conversations on how to return these works, particularly as some countries have indicated their interest and desire to return the works.

“I just come to bring the Chief of Staff on the steps that have been taken on the level of collaboration with the Federal Government. And the plans to build a museum in Benin that will host these works.

“And also that beyond the works, we are going to be having much archeological work undertaken to see what we can find and also research and resurrection of cultural heritage are the most,” he said.

On how ready the state is to receive the artifacts, he explained: “Like I said, a lot of work has been done. We have the legacy restoration trust, which is currently obtaining resources from very, very interested donors across the world.

“We expect that by the last quarter of this year working with the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, we should begin the construction of a pavilion, a world class pavilion that will meet all the conditions required by which this works can be kept. And as you know, many of them are very fragile and very old, but they have to be kept in protective conditions.”

When asked whether there would be restitution demand over the artifacts, he said: “For us today, the most important issue is to get this works back. Other issues will follow, so that we can reconnect with our past. Other issues will follow if they have.”

He also explained the crisis that was brewing in the state ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying that it was a question of blending together the old members and those who joined with him from the All Progressive Congress (APC).