The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ekiti government

  • Ekiti government presents N1b cheques to farmers

    Ekiti government presents N1b cheques to farmers

    Ekiti State Governor Biodun Oyebanji has said his administration will continue to support youth-driven agricultural initiatives through access to land, improved inputs, extension services mechanisation, market linkages and partnership with the private sector.

    He spoke during the presentation of cheques totalling one billion naira as profits made by the young farmers under the Bring Back the Youth in Agriculture programme for the 2025 harvest season.

    About 4,657 youths, who participated in the programme, got cheques ranging from N500,000 to N1,500,000 at the event held at Osuntokun Pavilion, Government House, Ado-Ekiti.

    Oyebanji said the programme aligned with his administration’s shared prosperity agenda because it led to job creation, which contributed to food sufficiency, poverty alleviation and general well-being of Ekiti residents.The governor, represented by the Chief of Staff, Mr Niyi Adebayo, noted that the event represented the reward of youths for months of dedication, resilience and adherence to best agricultural practices, adding that it signalled a strong message to every young person in the state and beyond that agriculture was no longer a vocation of last resort, but a business that one could proudly and profitably engage in on sustainable basis.

    Expressing appreciation to the youth for their resilience and cooperation throughout the period of the project, the governor said he was proud of their achievements as it demonstrated that with the right support, training and commitment, young people could drive economic growth and become employers of labour, rather than job seekers.

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    He urged them to utilise the proceeds wisely by reinvesting it in their farms by expanding their operations, adopting modern technologies and best practices as well as building sustainable agribusiness that could stand the test of time.

    He stressed the need for them to let their success mark the beginning of bigger achievements rather than the end of their journey.

    “Today’s gathering is not just about the presentation of cheques, it is about celebrating the triumph of our youths, an event that tells a powerful story of hard work, of discipline, of vision, of success. It is also to validate our own, our belief in agriculture as a viable and economic pathway.’’

    Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Mr Ebenezer Boluwade, expressed his appreciation to Governor Oyebanji for nurturing the vision, support and commitment to the success of the programme through his intervention in the establishment of 12 farm hubs for the youth, free land clearing that’s up to 5,000 hectares, provision of adequate security, construction of five dormitories in Ikere, Eporo, Ado, Aramoko and Iyemero as well as provision of buses to all the farm clusters among others.

  • Ekiti bans Fayemi from public office for 10 years

    Ekiti bans Fayemi from public office for 10 years

    Ekiti State Government on Monday banned former governor of the state, Kayode Fayemi, from holding public office for 10 years.

    The decision followed the receipt of the report of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry which investigated the handling of state finances during the Fayemi administration between October 2010 and October 2014.

    The panel ordered the former governor to account for the whereabouts of N2.75 billion allocated from the N25 billion bond obtained by the government for the execution of contract for the construction of Ultra-Modern market in Ado Ekiti, which was never executed.

    The state’s former Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Dapo Kolawole, was also banned for 10 years.

    The panel also recommended that the duo should refund various sums of money to the state government coffers.

    The State Executive Council accepted the recommendations and adopted the panel’s White Paper at Monday’s emergency meeting.

     

     

  • Court acquits man of defrauding Ekiti Govt of N72m

    Court acquits man of defrauding Ekiti Govt of N72m

    A Federal High Court in Ado Ekiti on Wednesday discharged and acquitted a 52-year-old man, Tunde Adebayo, charged with defrauding Ekiti State Government of N72 million.

    He was arraigned on a two-count charge of conspiracy and fraud.

    The prosecution had alleged that the accused obtained N72 million to supply laptops for 450 senior police officers in the state.

    Justice Donatus Okorowo, in his judgment, noted that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubts.

    “The prosecution counsel failed to produce any record to support the allegations of conspiracy and fraud against the defendant.

    “He is hereby discharged and acquitted.”

    The prosecution counsel, Mr. Femi Falade, had told the court that the defendant committed the offences on March 18, 2009.

    He said the defendant conspired with others now at large to defraud the state government of N72 million obtained from the State Multi-purpose Credit Agency Office, Ado-Ekiti, for the purchase of laptops for 450 senior police officers.

    He alleged that Adebayo supplied only 270 laptops out of the approved 450 and failed to supply the remaining ones to the command.

    The prosecutor said Adebayo also failed to return the balance of the sum paid for the purchase of the laptops.

    The offences, according to him, contravened Section 8(a) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under same.

    NAN

     

  • ‘Ekiti yet to receive any cash from latest Paris Club refund’

    The Ekiti State government has said it has not received the latest tranche of Paris Club refund from the Federal Government.

    The state Commissioner for Information, Lanre Ogunsuyi, said government will disburse the fund to the appropriate channels as soon as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) releases the cash to it.

    He appealed to civil servants and pensioners not to entertain any fear about the cash maintaining, saying the Ayo Fayose administration has always been transparent on the management of finances.

    According to him, the government will summon labour leaders as soon as the cash arrives to ensure that it is used for the purpose it is meant for.

    The commissioner, however, dismissed allegation that the last tranche received in January was diverted.

    Ogunsuyi said the issue of diversion of cash does not arise in Ekiti, maintaining that the last tranche received from the federal government was not diverted.

    He said: “The first tranche was not diverted and the whole amount was N8.8 billion out of which N3.6 went to the local governments. There were conditions attached to it by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in agreement with the Commissioners for Finance that 50 per cent would be used to pay workers’ salaries.

    “In Ekiti State, we paid about 60 per cent as salaries, 40 per cent was used to service other sectors. Concerning the one that is coming, the laid down agreement will be followed.

    “We will continue to adhere to the best practices in financial management. Ekiti won the first position in financial transparency and Ekiti is the leading state among those that adhered to budgetary discipline.”

  • Abductions: APC lawmakers’ claim wicked, insensitive – Ekiti

    Abductions: APC lawmakers’ claim wicked, insensitive – Ekiti

    Ekiti State Government has described as “evil, wicked and insensitive” claim by the All Progressives Congress lawmakers in the state that the ‘stop and search’ operation ordered by the State Security Council to stem cases of kidnapping was an orchestrated plot by the governor to track them for kidnapping and consequently stall the impeachment plot against Governor Ayo Fayose.

    The government said such unwarranted allegation coming from the runaway APC lawmakers was a clear exposure of the party’s culpability in the abduction of Ekiti citizens.

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led administration accused the APC lawmakers of “betraying their guilt by simply telling Nigerians that they want the kidnapping of Ekiti residents to continue.”

    According to the Special Assistant to the Governor on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, “The Fayose-led government will do everything humanly possible to protect lives and properties of Ekiti people.

    He said what is expected from genuine lovers of the state is to cooperate with security agencies, and not politicization of every efforts of the government.

    The government said, “For the avoidance of doubt, the introduction of strict security measures and check points in strategic places across the state, prohibition of the usage of tinted classes, frequent hotel checks, with a call to hoteliers to monitor their customers and offer information to security agents on any suspected person and seal up of any hotel linked to criminals were resolutions of the Ekiti State Security Council meeting that took place on Monday.

    “Only wicked and evil people, whose agenda is to make Ekiti State ungovernable will kick against these measures that are aimed at securing the lives and properties of the people.”