Oyebanji sacks heads of agencies, technical advisers as second term begins

Ekiti State Governor Biodun Oyebanji has disengaged all directors-general of government agencies and technical advisers in his administration, completing a fresh round of changes involving political appointees ahead of his second term.

According to a statement on Tuesday by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Olayinka Oyebode, the decision takes immediate effect, with the affected officials directed to submit their handover notes to the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.

The statement, however, noted that a few appointments had been retained because of the nature of the officials’ assignments.

“The disengagement, which came barely 24 hours after the dissolution of the State Executive Council, marks the completion of the disengagement process for political appointees serving in the administration, except for a few whose appointments have been retained in view of the nature of their assignments,” the statement said.

Mr Oyebanji thanked the affected officials for their support, commitment and contributions to his administration and the development of Ekiti State, wishing them success in their future endeavours.

The latest decision follows an earlier round of changes announced on 27 September, when the governor dissolved boards, commissions and parastatals and terminated the appointments of political aides.

The latest disengagement comes as Mr Oyebanji prepares for his second term, with his inauguration scheduled for Friday, 16 October.

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Mr Oyebanji, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, won his re-election in the 20 June governorship election with 319,224 votes winning across the state’s 16 local government areas, defeating his closest challenger, Oluwole Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 40,543 votes.

His victory made him the first incumbent governor in Ekiti State to win re-election, securing a second consecutive term in office.