Ekiti bars Fayemi, ex-commissioner from public office for 10 years

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BY Unknown Tuesday, January 16, 2018 0

Ekiti bars Fayemi, ex-commissioner from public office for 10 years

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Kayode Fayemi

• Ex-gov, Kolawole to refund N2.7b, N325m
• ‘It cannot stand, it is a joke taken too far’

Former governor of Ekiti State and Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, and his finance commissioner, Mr. Dapo Kolawole, have been barred from holding any public office in the state and Nigeria for 10 years.

The sanction followed the acceptance by the Ekiti State Executive Council of the white paper on the judicial panel of inquiry that investigated Fayemi’s administration. The ban was predicated on the refusal of Fayemi and Kolawole to appear before the commission even after the determination of the case challenging the inauguration of the panel by Ekiti State High Court.

“Their disrespect to the constituted authority and the undignified roles they played in the whole contracts saga were obviously against the interest of the state they were supposed to protect. They are banned from holding public office in Ekiti and any part of Nigeria.”

The Commissioner for Information, Mr. Lanre Ogunsuyi described Ekiti State as a pacesetter when it comes to management of finances.

“Government views accountability and probity as hallmark of good governance. Therefore, the government decided to set up the judicial panel of inquiry in line with its law enacted in 2012. The government viewed seriously the report and it intends to carry out all the recommendations, “ Ogunsuyi said.

Among other highlights of the white paper is that Fayemi and Kolawole should refund N2.7 billion which was allegedly allocated for building of an ultra-modern market but was not executed. The government further directed the Ministry of Justice to institute appropriate legal actions to this effect.

“Fayemi and Kolawole should be made to account for the difference of N340 million from the N1.5 billion earmarked from the bond proceeds for the upgrade of infrastructure at Ikogosi Warm Spring which could not be accounted for, “ the panel recommended.

The commission also said the contractor that furnished the government house built by the Fayemi’s administration should be made to refund N324.8 million because the contract should not have been more than N280 million.

The panel said it found out that KITWOOD Nigeria Limited to which the contract of over N600 million was awarded had no traceable address as “the address on the Letter of Award is a virgin land at opposite the new Central Bank along new Iyin Road, Ado Ekiti.”

The former governor and the commissioner are also to pay other monies running to billions of naira to the state government coffers.

Governor Ayodele Fayose who received the white paper said: “We are doing what is right within the ambit of the law by appointing competent people for the assignment. We must be seen to be doing the right thing and it is not wrong to ask how the finances of the state have been appropriated within a given time and we are following due process.

“The All Progressives Congress (APC) government says they are looking into this and that, even if you say they are biased, what can anyone do? I am part of the panel that sat for the inquiry. They submitted the report to me and I presented it to appropriate organ and I will do the same with this document. This is not personal in any way, we are only doing the right thing and following due process.

“ The presidency appointed Ibrahim Magu and Prof. Mamoud and these people are doing their work. The Federal Government also appointed judges, does this mean that these appointees would not do the right things?”

The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has described as pre-meditated verdict, the Ekiti State Government white paper submitted by the panel set up by Governor Ayodele Fayose to investigate the finances of the state between 2010 and 2014.

In a reaction through his media aide, Yinka Oyebode yesterday, Fayemi said; “While it is part of the responsibilities of the state administration to look into the finances of the state at any point in time, we are also of the belief that such must be done in a very responsible manner devoid of prejudice, witchhunting and a calculated attempt to victimise a citizen.

“In this particular case, the entire process is discredited right from the beginning, as the only agenda of the panel was to rubbish Fayemi’s public service record.

“In his desperation, Governor Fayose chose the crude and ignoble path towards hitting a perceived political foe.
In the process, they ignored the rule of law and behaved as if the court does not matter. Thus making their actions subjudice to the court.

“It shall not stand. It is nothing but a joke taken too far, perhaps joke of the century.”

Ekiti denies cloning workers’ voter cards

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BY Unknown Monday, January 15, 2018 0

Ekiti denies cloning workers’ voter cards

The Ekiti State Government has explained that it is not collecting voter cards from workers in order to clone them.

It said the voter cards were collected from beneficiaries of loan as a means of identification.

The Commissioner for Information, Youths and Sports Development, Mr. Lanre Ogunsuyi, stated this in response to allegation that the state was cloning the voter cards after collecting them.

He said, “It is not true that government is cloning workers’ voter cards. What we are doing is an empowerment for the workers which is optional because nobody is being compelled for it.

“The loan is optional and somebody can look at the conditions attached and such a person can opt out if he or she is not satisfied with the conditions.

“The reason why women are asked to bring their voter cards is that majority of them don’t have driving licence, national identity card or travel passport and their easy means of identification is voter card.

“Nobody should read any negative meaning to the good intention of the government to empower its citizens. No card is being cloned anywhere.”

An interest group in the state work force, the Enlightened Workers’ Forum, had queried the collection of voter cards before workers could be given loan.

The group in a statement on Sunday by its state Coordinator, Mike Bamidele, stated that women civil servants were the first set of beneficiaries of the loan scheme as the men would soon take their turn.

Ekiti Christmas clothing: We must give our children sense of belonging —Fayose

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BY Unknown Sunday, December 03, 2017 0

Ekiti Christmas clothing: We must give our children sense of belonging —Fayose

Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose dressing a two-year-old girl during the flag off of the distribution of Christmas and New Year clothing for 20,000 children in Ekiti, Ado Ekiti, on Sunday, December 3, 2017.

Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose has advocated for an inclusion of children’s welfare into the management of government at all levels.

He said that every tier of government must endeavour to concretely cater for the needs of children, especially children of the less privileged.

According to a press statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor,  Mr Idowu Adelusi, Fayose gave the advocacy while personally dressing up some children in Ekiti who benefitted from his provision of Christmas clothing for over 20,000 children in the state.

The governor who, he said was overwhelmed by the joyous way the kids in the state welcomed the idea, raised the number of beneficiaries from 10,000 to 20,000. Sunday was the official inauguration of the distribution of the clothing to the kid beneficiaries.

Hundreds of parents with their children, according to the release “trooped to the Osuntokun pavilion of the Government House, Ado Ekiti, at about 12 noon on Sunday to answer the governor’s call aired on the state television and radio some days earlier.

“Already, over 250 tailors from Ekiti had brought their sewing machines three days earlier to the Osuntokun hall and began sewing the Christmas wears for kids from one to 10 years old.

“Assorted local fabrics of Ankara, Guinea, and Kampala among others had been purchased by the governor and made available to the local tailors for the exercise.”

According to the release, Fayose, speaking with reporters shortly before he began to personally dress up some of the kids to flag off the ceremony said: “As a government, we must be seen to be caring, not by mere saying it but by practice. Part of our duty is to give our kids a sense of belonging. We are bound to provide some happiness for them at a yuletide such as this. We are providing Christmas clothing for over  20,000 of our kids. We will raise it to 100,000 by next year as I am very sure the next governor will come from my party PDP.”

Urging the kids to inform their parents to support his candidate, Professor Kolapo Olusola for the 2018 governorship poll,  the governor danced with the kids who sang songs of praise and appreciation for him, hailing him: Oshoko!, his political alias name repeatedly.

Some of the kids and parents of those who benefited from the kind gesture and spoke to reporters, thanked the governor for being concerned for their needs, saying that it was the first time ever a governor would be so concerned about the children of the less privileged as to provide Christmas clothing for them.

Omolola Adewale from Ado Ekiti, said: “We are very happy at what Fayose has done for our kids. It is very good and heartwarming. My only wish for him is to also become our president so that he can cater for more Nigerian kids this way.”

Ogunleye Rashidat from Ajebamidele in Ado said; “We appreciate governor Fayose for what he has done we pray the Lord will continue to bless and provide for him. We are very grateful”.

Similarly,  Mr Samson Adio who was one of the tailors engaged by the government to sew the dress praised the Governor as the exercise provided him money to buy foodstuff.

When asked how much he had realised from the numbers of clothes she sewed in the last two days,   he said N16, 000.

Mrs  Idayat Ajewole, a textile material dealer thanked Governor for buying the materials from the traders in Ekiti instead of going to Ibadan or Lagos. ” This is our own governor, who cares for our well being,” she said.