The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ekiti

  • Ekiti Tribunal to deliver judgment tomorrow

    Ekiti Tribunal to deliver judgment tomorrow

    The Justice Siraju Mohammed-led tribunal has fixed tomorrow for judgment in the petition by the All Progressives Congress (APC) against the outcome of the June 21 governorship election in Ekiti State.

    Justice Mohammed chose December 19 for judgment after lawyers representing parties to the petition  adopted their final written addresses.

    The respondents are the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Ayo Fayose, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Chief of Army Staff and the inspector general of police.

    Before adopting his final address, the petitioner’s lawyer, Lateef Fagbemi, reminded the tribunal that contrary to the impression created by the defendants, the petition was predicated on the contention that Fayose was not qualified to contest the election.

    He urged the court to allow the petition and dismiss the responses by the five respondents.

    Lawyers to the respondents, including Yusuf Ali, Onyechi Ikpeazu, Abayomi Sadiku and Abdulkadir Ajana, argued that the petitioner failed to prove its case.

    They also argued that the petitioner was unable to provide evidence to support its petition. They urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition.

    The APC, in the petition, urged the tribunal to “unravel the facts surrounding the election,” contending that it was more of “a mechanical exercise than conventional casting of votes”.

    The party alleged manipulation of the election in favour of the PDP candidate; undue militarisation and the impeachment of Fayose in 2006, as well as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) cases hanging on the governor-elect.

    It is also the petitioner’s contention that Fayose was not qualified to participate in the election, “aside from the process of the poll’s conduct, which was faulty”.

  • Glorious day for three Ekiti teachers

    Glorious day for three Ekiti teachers

    It was a glorious day for three teachers of St. Mary’s Catholic Nursery and Primary School, Irona, Ado-Ekiti who  were honoured at an impressive ceremony to mark their retirement from public service.

    Former Head Teacher, Mrs. Rebecca Moradeke Ogundare; Assistant Head Teacher Mrs. Janet Leye Ojo and class teacher Mrs. Deborah Olufunmilayo Adelusi were honoured after putting in the statutory 35 years in careers that dated back to old Ondo State.

    Teachers, non-teaching members of staff and pupils of the school, teachers and pupils from other schools, family members, well wishers and other members of the public thronged the school’s sport field to witness the event. The event featured songs, recitation of poems, cultural dance, choreography by pupils and special song from the teachers of the school.

    Teachers of the school were resplendent in their pink lace ‘aso ebi’ and sky blue headgears. They defied the scorching sun to sing for the retirees with whom they enjoyed good working relationship.

    The three retirees and their spouses wore grey lace materials with orange headgears to match.

    The retirees were also showered with gifts from individuals and the schools where they served during their careers.

    The chairman of the occasion, Senator Bode Ola, in his speech congratulated the trio on the retirement from public service.

    He advocated an enhanced welfare package for teachers, noting that teaching is the foundation of all other professions.

    In her address, Head Teacher of the school, Mrs. Modupe Ajayi, said that it is a thing of joy to work for 35 years and retire without any blemish.

    She said the teachers’ efforts must have produced important persons in the society.  But added: “Sadly enough, the society does not accord due recognition to teachers and this calls for a rethink.”

    “The retirees of today had paid their dues and are bowing out with their heads held high. They have contributed in no small measure to the education of many pupils in the last 35 years and have left their indelible prints on the sands of time.

    “There is nothing done for them that can match what they have put in. We can only ask God to compensate them appropriately. While in service, they were dedicated, committed, hardworking, compassionate, painstakingly thorough.

    “All these attributes marked them out as thoroughbred administrators, a legacy they bequeathed to their successors. As they were successful at work, they were equally successful on the home front as virtuous women. The staff and students cannot thank you enough for your contributions and we will ever remain grateful”.

    Mrs. Ajayi also hailed what she called the “unparalleled cooperation and support” of the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) in the success story of the school.

    Responding on behalf of the honorees, the retired head teacher Mrs. Ogundare expressed delight for the “great honour” done her and the two other retirees which she noted would remain indelible in her memory.

    Mrs. Ogundare described teaching as the best profession in the world saying she and her co-retirees were fulfilled being teachers as the profession gave them an opportunity to mould the future of the nation’s future leaders.

    She said it was a rare privilege to serve for 35 years and quit when ovation was loudest commending the staff and pupils of St. Mary’s Catholic Nursery and Primary School for their cooperation during her tenure as head teacher.

    “Today is a glorious day for us, serving for 35 years is rare privilege and we want to give God the glory for sparing our lives to witness today in which we are being honoured by all of you who are here.

    “We are all fulfilled being teachers and teaching still remains a noble profession. Its contributions to nation building cannot be quantified and we are glad that the pupils who have passed through us are making their marks all over the world.

    “On behalf of the retirees, I want to thank you for honouring us today and we are grateful for these wonderful gifts you have showered on us. We will continue to remember today and thank God for the rest if our lives”, she said.

     

  • Fear grips residents as gunmen attack Ekiti prison

    Fear grips residents as gunmen attack Ekiti prison

    The peaceful night rest of residents of Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, was on November 30 shattered by a vicious attack on the federal prisons located on Afao Road by gunmen whose identity is yet to be known. ODUNAYO OGUNMOLA examines the impact of the attack.

    They were having a sound sleep in preparation for the hustling and bustling of a week which promises to be busy. Night had fallen, the birds in the surrounding bush chirping away and nocturnal harmattan breeze penetrating the inner recesses of the homes nearby.

    There was absolute silence in an area a bit far from the city centre, human and vehicular movement almost nil as it is in most parts of Ado-Ekiti, a city where residents retire to bed so early.

    Shops were closed, schools, offices, places of worship under lock and key with the unpredictability of darkness looming large. Most of the residents would have greeted one another “goodnight” hoping to exchange the “good morning greetings again in few hours’ time.

    They never knew that danger was lurking around; they never knew that death was around the corner lying in wait ferociously for the next prey in a country where life is seemingly cheap.

    As most of the inhabitants of Ado-Ekiti were already in their sleep, the messengers of death crept in unannounced, armed with lethal weapons to be unleashed with fury never witnessed before.

    Their target: the Federal Prisons, Ado-Ekiti tucked away in what used to be a virgin land off Afao Road in the North-eastern flank of the city.

    Residents whose houses are not far from the prisons were woken up by loud sound of blazing guns, dynamites and other leather weapons unleashed on the facility.

    One after the other, they were forced to wake up, with some saying their last prayers because they thought the enemy was already at their doorposts.

    Some turned themselves to emergency prayer warriors urging the Almighty to come to their aid and save them from the jaws of death.

    Who could they be? Where are they coming from? What was their mission? When will they leave? Are they Boko Haram militants? Are they armed robbers? Why the booming guns and other weapons of mass destruction in one of most peaceful neighbourhoods of Ado-Ekiti?

    More questions but unfortunately answers were not forthcoming immediately. But they got to know in the early hours of Monday that it was the prisons that were attacked.

    Even with the cessation of gunfire, many were still afraid to venture out of their homes for fear of the unknown. Terror-stricken residents who had the courage to move out gathered in groups discussing the incidents in hushed tones.

    After the smoke of the attack had cleared, at least one prison officer was dead, 20 security dogs killed, the main prison gate blown off and palpable fear enveloped the city.

    Originally, the prison has the capacity to hold 200 inmates but it contained 435 inmates at the time of the attack. They are made up of convicted inmates, condemned inmates and awaiting trial inmates.

    The facility is relatively new; having been inaugurated for use in 2012 following its relocation from the old site in Okesa, very close to the Government House in the heart of the city.

    The relocation of the old facility apart from the fact that it was too congested was also to make way for the construction of the Civic Centre and Museum.

    The old prisons, apart from being located in the heart of Ado-Ekiti, was also very close to the state judiciary headquarter, housing the High Courts and the Magistrates’ Courts where inmates on trial are taken on their respective dates.

    This means that when the prison was located on its former site, inmates on trial used to arrive in the court between two or three minutes depending on the traffic situation of the day.

    All that has changed since the facility was relocated to Afao Road, about eight kilometres from the old site. People in this area are used to the blaring of siren from prison vehicles conveying inmates on trial to courts on their appointed dates.

    From all indications, the attack was least prepared for by officers and men of the Ado-Ekiti Prisons despite the similar ones carried out in other parts of the country.

    To the officers and men of the Ekiti State Command of the Nigerian Prisons Service (NPS), it was a bolt from the blues and a hit below the belt which will never be forgotten in a hurry; being the first time they were experiencing such an attack.

    The Nation gathered from credible prison sources that the gunmen invaded the facility at 10:30 p.m. on Sunday, November 30 and operated unhindered till about 1: 45 a.m. on Monday.

    As soon as they stormed the prisons, the gunmen detonated a bomb and launched an orgy of shootings that lasted for about 45 minutes.

    Some prisons sources claimed that the gunmen, who were believed to be about 60 in number, arrived in Hilux vans and chanted “Allahu Akbar”, “Allahu Akbar”, “Allahu Akbar” announcing their arrival with staccato of gunshots.

    This initially gave them away as Boko Haram extremists but another source said it couldn’t have been Boko Haram insurgents on the grounds that “no member of the terrorist group is being held inside the facility”.

    The source said the chants of “Allahu Akbar” chanted by the gunmen might have been a dummy to mask the identity and confused their victims about their real identity.

    A prisons officer was killed in the incident while unspecified number of men of the service was injured in the attack.

    A woman believed to be the wife of the slain officer was wailing controllably. She was being consoled by sympathisers and later led away from the scene.

    The impact of the bombing on the facility was felt in places like Adebayo, Oke-Ila, Fajuyi, Okesa and the Ekiti State University (EKSU) campus and the adjoining Iworoko community.

    The loud bang of the bombing was deafening to the extent that inmates fled in various directions either to escape being killed by the invading gunmen or to use the opportunity of the confusion to run away from justice.

    As soon as the Ekiti State Police Command got wind of the incident, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Taiwo Lakanu led battle-ready men of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) to the scene.

    With the departure of the gunmen, all the police could do was to weave a heavy security cordon around the facility to prevent a further attack and escape of more inmates.

    Reporters who learnt of the incident were denied entry into the facility which was guarded by fully-armed security men. They were not allowed to take the pictures of the affected parts of the facility.

    The State Comptroller of Prisons, Mr. Kehinde Fadipe, described the incident as “both bombing and shooting”.

    He denied being aware of any prison officer killed, even as he expressed regrets that a good number of inmates were released by the gunmen.

    Fadipe, who was apparently disturbed by the incident, could not immediately give the exact number of those who escaped, saying his command would give a figure of escapees later.

    Fadipe said: “We are moving around to assess the situation. It was not a jailbreak but an attack on the prison. The main entrance of the prison was broken.

    “What happened was that we were attacked from outside and not from within, they came massively with different weapons. They attacked our men on duty and we had been around since 10:30 p.m. yesterday (Sunday).”

    The prisons chief revealed that some of the inmates who escaped are being re-arrested, adding that he had been assured of co-operation by sister security agencies in a bid to arrest more of the escapees.

    Fadipe said he did not believe that the attack was carried out by Boko Haram, stressing that none of their members is being held at the prisons.

    He also dismissed insinuations in some quarters that members of the O’odua Peoples Congress (OPC) carried out the attack in a bid to free their leader, Niyi Adedipe, who is on remand at the prisons for murder.

    Fadipe said Adedipe was still inside the prison yard and did not make any attempt to escape.

    Despite the fact that the attack, from all indications, was similar to the ones recorded in various parts of the country and appeared not to be politically-motivated, it was later clothed in the garb of politics by local politicians who had been at each others’ throats over some issues.

    A news item on the attack which was described as “ breaking news” was related by presenters of a popular Yoruba newspaper review programme,  ”Lati Inu Aka” on the state-owned Ekiti 91.5 FM sparked a big row between the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The presenters of the programme claimed that the information they received was to the effect that the attack was allegedly carried out by suspected APC thugs to free OPC leader Adedipe also known as “Apase”.

    Adedipe is being held on remand in connection with the murder of a former Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Omolafe Aderiye.

    Also being held inside the prison yard in connection with the killing of the former NURTW boss is the acting chairman of the state chapter of the Road Transport Employers’ Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Bayo Aderiye also known as Ojugo.

    The allegation enraged the opposition camp in the state which described it as another ploy by the PDP-led administration which controls the radio station to tarnish the image of the APC and frame up opposition politicians.

    The state APC Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatubosun, in a telephone chat with reporters denied the involvement of his party in the attack on prisons, wondering what will his party gain in launching an attack on the prisons.

    “What shall we gain for doing that? We cannot do such things. It is not in our character to do such things.

    ”Very soon, the PDP and the governor will have to accuse God for running a clueless government and for their shortcoming.

    “This is a figment of imagination of a clueless government and I want to ask, is it the APC that is in charge of the prison or the security of the state?

    “It is the figment of their imagination that the APC is connected with the breaking of the prison. We don’t know anything about it.”

    Governor Ayo Fayose, in his immediate reaction, condemned the attack on the Federal Prisons, Ado-Ekiti by gunmen, saying those who perpetrated the attack will not know peace.

    The governor stated this while performing the swearing-in of the new Head of Service, Mr. Gbenga Faseluka, five Permanent Secretaries and three special advisers.

    Speaking at the event, Fayose described the gunmen who blew up the prisons as “evil people”, regretting the escape of many prisoners in the attack.

    He said: “We regret the jailbreak perpetrated by the evil people who led to the escape of many inmates.

    “I want you to know that I have the grace of God on me and whoever plans against us shall be destroyed. My prayer is that they will not know peace.”

    Meanwhile, the state police command has declared that no stone would be left unturned to apprehend the fleeing inmates as it is collaborating with the authorities of the prisons to arrest the escapees.

    The state police spokesman, Victor Babayemi disclosed that the vicinity of the prisons has been cordoned off while security in and around the place has been tightened.

    He further revealed that some of the escapees have been re-arrested while others still at large are being trailed.

    Babayemi urged residents not to panic on the incident as the “situation has been brought under control”.

    At the time of writing this report, a total number of 193 out of the 435 inmates who were inside the facility at the time of the attack, have been re-captured. This was disclosed in Abuja by the NPS spokesperson, Ope Fatinikun.

    While explaining that efforts are on to apprehend those who are still at large, Fatinikun appealed to Nigerians, especially the nearest communities and neighbouring states of Ondo, Kogi, Kwara, Osun and Edo to be vigilant and watch out for suspicious individuals and report them to the nearest prisons or police stations.

    Still angered by the development, Governor Fayose called for the immediate transfer of all officers of the Federal Prisons, Ado-Ekiti out of the state for their alleged negligence and dereliction of duty which aided the attack.

    Fayose, during a visit to the facility, expressed anger with the prison officials for allegedly allowing inmates access to telephones and other electronic gadgets which he suspected contributed in one way or the other to the attack.

    He regretted that allowing hardened criminals facing serious charges like murder, rape, robbery and other violent crimes access to communication gadgets constitute a high security risk.

    The governor predicated his demand on the suspicion that prison officials might have connived with the unknown gunmen who stormed the place and freed over 300 inmates.

    He said: “The way and manner the bloody attack was successfully carried out without much resistance suggested suspicion of connivance.”

    Fayose wondered why the prisons authorities failed to use the tower at the facility.

    During the governor’s visit, there was a scuffle among some prison officials and journalists.

    The shouting match was due to the overzealousness of some prison officials who were not comfortable with the presence of newsmen who insisted on taking photographs.

    This enraged the prison officer but the situation was later brought under control following the intervention of senior officers and officials in the governor’s convoy.

    However, the state police boss, Lakanu has expressed the readiness of the state command to assist the Federal Prisons, Ado-Ekiti in beefing up security around the premises.

    He told newsmen while on a follow-up visit to the prisons that since it was apparent that the combatant men and arms squad unit of the prisons could not manage the security situation at the prison alone, his men would be deployed to ensure reinforcement.

    Lakanu revealed that the escapee inmates who were picked up at various towns such as Ido-Ekiti, Ikere-Ekiti and Ado-Ekiti were currently being detained at various police stations in the state.

    The attack on the Ado-Ekiti Prisons has affected court cases involving inmates at the Magistrate’s Courts and High Courts in the Ado-Ekiti Judicial Division.

    Many of the suspects usually brought to court are believed to have escaped during the attack on the prisons.

    Some of the inmates who fled the prisons voluntarily returned and turned themselves over to the authorities.

    The gunmen opened doors for all inmates at the prison facility and asked them to escape, The Nation gathered.

    The state police command spokesman, Babayemi, at another forum disclosed that “the very notorious ones facing murder and robbery charges” are among those just apprehended.

    Babayemi revealed that the OPC leader Adedipe a.k.a. Apase and RTEAN chief Aderiye were not among those who escaped.

    He said Lakanu personally led a patrol team to a “notorious spot” where 10 of the escapees were arrested after what he called a “serious exchange of gunfire”.

    According to him, the escapees were picked up in different parts of the state through the efforts of various police divisions, saying efforts are still on to apprehend inmates who are still at large.

    Babayemi revealed that those re-arrested would be charged for a fresh offence of jailbreak which he described as a criminal offence, saying escaping from lawful custody constitutes a new offence.

    He said: “The CP led a team yesterday (Monday) night to some of the hideouts and there was a serious exchange of gunfire. We had intelligence report where they were hiding.

    “At that notorious spot, 10 of those who escaped were re-arrested but no life was lost. But I want to add that investigation continues.

    “Operation is still ongoing, the DPOs are still bringing their reports and we have also asked the prisons authorities to give us the actual number of the escapees.

    “Some of them said they ran for cover to escape being hit by the bullets fired by the gunmen. Apase and Ojugo were not among the notorious ones re-arrested.

    “The attackers opened the cell doors and told them to escape; it was not a natural occurrence some people are behind the attack. We are investigating it to determine if there is any complicity.”

    Fayose, who denied harbouring the prison escapees in the Government House accused the APC of harbouring inmates who escaped from the prison, accusing the party of fabricating lies.

    The governor said the APC is making the latest allegation with the intention of diverting the attention of the public from their “criminal tendencies”.

    The APC, in a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Chief Olatubosun, accused Governor Fayose of complicity in the attack on the prison following conflicting statements on the incident between him and his aide, Lere Olayinka.

    The party said while the governor blamed the prison officials for complicity, Olayinka accused APCý of masterminding the crime to free Niyi Adedipe, who was in prison custody over alleged complicity in the murder of drivers’ union boss, Omolafe Aderiye.

     

  • Jail break: perpetrators will not know peace -Fayose

    Jail break: perpetrators will not know peace -Fayose

    Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose has condemned the attack on the Federal Prisons, Ado-Ekiti by gunmen saying those who perpetrated the attack will not know peace.

     

    The governor stated this on Monday while swearing-in of the new Head of Service, Mr. Gbenga Faseluka and five Permanent Secretaries.

     

    The new permanent secretaries are Mr. Ademiloye Fasiku, Mr. Ayodeji Ajiboye, Mrs. Olabisi Akindele, Mr. Lawrence Babatope and Mr. Sunday Komolafe.

     

    The immediate past Head of Service, Mr. Bunmi Famosaya, was sworn in as Special Adviser in the Office of the Governor.

     

    Speaking at the event, Fayose described the gunmen who blew up the prisons as “evil people” regretting the escape of many prisoners in the attack.”

     

    “We regret the jailbreak perpetrated by the evil people which led to the escape of many inmates.

     

    “I want you to know that I have the grace of God on me and whoever plans against us shall be destroyed. My prayer is that they will not know peace,” Fayose stated.

     

    Meanwhile, the state police command is collaborating with the authorities of the prisons to arrest inmates who escaped during the attack.

     

    The state police spokesman Victor Babayemi told reporters that the Commissioner of Police Taiwo  Lakanu personally  led officers and men to the scene of the incident on learning about the attack.

     

    Babayemi disclosed that the vicinity of the prisons has been cordoned off while security in and around the place has been tightened.

     

    He disclosed that some of the escapees have been re-arrested while others still at large are being trailed.

     

    Babayemi urged residents not to panic saying the situation has been put under control.

  • Fasuan to ‘warring’ parties: let peace reign in Ekiti

    Fasuan to ‘warring’ parties: let peace reign in Ekiti

    An Ekiti elder, Chief Oladeji Fasuan, has urged parties involved in the face-off between the Executive and the House of Assembly to reconcile in the interest of the state.

    Fasuan, who spoke after the launch of his book titled “Scaling Accidents of History plus Political Gladiators of My Time”, said: “The effort to end the dispute  is ongoing. An all-involving reconciliation parley is under way and it will be successful.”

    Dignitaries at the event include legal icon Aare Afe Babalola, who was represented by Prof. Abiodun Ojo; Prof Kunle Adegun, who reviewed the book and the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Taiwo Lakanu.

    Also present were the retired Bishop of Ondo, Rev. Michael Ipinmoye; Bishop of Ekiti Rev. CT Omotunde; Dr. Adejoro Fasanmade; Dr. Ayo Ogunlade; Senator Olagunju Kolawole; Justice Dele Omotoso; Mrs. Kofo Ayeni; former permanent secretary and head of service in Ondo, Ajose Kudeinbu and Dr. Bayo Oriire.

    Monarchs at the event include the Alare of Are, Oba Boluwade Adebiyi; Olojudo of Ido Faboro Oba Ilori Ayorinde; Alara of Aramoko Oba Olu Adeyemi and the Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Rufus Adejugbe, who was represented by the Odoba of Ado-Ekiti, High Chief Alex Ajayi.

    Fasuan, a retired permanent secretary in the old Ondo State, said two groups had been struggling to end the crisis- State Council of Elders and the Council of Traditional Rulers.

    His words: “The Elders’ Council has sent for them and now the Council of Traditional Rulers has written to them again.

    “What the two parties have to tell them is that Ekiti is bigger than anyone. As the chief motivator for the creation of Ekiti State and member of Ekiti elders’ council, I should not be seen to ally with either groups or see our efforts go to waste.

    “If I say the truth, the party unfavoured by my ‘truth’ automatically sees me as enemy. Left and right will bash me. We then resorted to higher cultural authorities, the monarchs, when the efforts at the level of Elders’ Council seemed not to have succeeded.

    “We are 80 in the elders council and will all be in attendance when the Traditional Council meet them again. They  need to know that human beings are transient and that politics is ‘here today gone tomorrow’.

    Lamenting the dwindling fortunes of education in the country, the author  said “The bane of our educational system is not only because Nigerians are no more reading books or conserving documents, but that these books are not even available.”

  • Ecstasy in Ekiti community over 32-bed hospital

    Ecstasy in Ekiti community over 32-bed hospital

    Going by the World Health Organisation (WHO) records, the average life expectancy in Nigeria is 47 years. Even though that of Ekiti State is put at 54, the highest in Nigeria, Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU reports that the member representing Ikole/Oye Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, Hon. Bimbo Daramola, regards the figure as low. To further enhance the well-being of members of his constituency, he built the Joan Taiwo Daramola Memorial Hospital 

    He is famous for his penchant for the welfare of people of Ekiti State. This proclivity to people’s well-being is better enhanced by his political belief, which the All Progressives Congress (APC), a party that preaches overall development of the human person as against stomach infrastructure.

    By means of this political platform, Bimbo Daramola has become an unquantifiable driving force for human capital development and empowerment. He is consistent in pontificating politics of welfare and development, which he always emphasised and recommended as the only panacea that would bring succour to the suffering Nigerian masses.

    Being a consistent and seeming incorrigible proponent and vanguard of good governance, Hon. Daramola has endeared himself to the Ekiti masses. This is so because not only does he preach it, he also acted it since his election in 2011 as a member of the National Assembly to represent Ikole/Oye Federal Constituency.

    On November 8, this year, Hon. Daramola added another first to his dossier as a trail blazer among public servants in Ekiti State. He built a 32-bed hospital worth over N100 million for members of his constituency for improved health care delivery.

    It is not only the monetary value of the project that speaks volume, but its conception and being the first of its kind by any federal legislator in the history of the 18-year-old  Ekiti State.

    The hospital built with his personal funds is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment. The project was not executed with funds provided by the National Assembly under the constituency projects’ funds.

    In fact, Hon. Daramola had always been on the good side of history as far as the politics of Ekiti State is concerned. He is a man of unblemished records of service and his political antecedent in a generation that lays much emphasis on stomach infrastructure has not been tainted in anyway.

    One of these scintillating services he had rendered to the people was that he and ex-governor Kayode Fayemi joined efforts to fight for the liberation of Ekiti State for three-and-a-half years under the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).

    Today, the gains of the protracted battle are being savoured by the people in terms of infrastructural facelift which the immediate past government engendered in the state.

    He also served as the Director-General of the Kayode Fayemi campaign organisation in a bid to consolidate the gains of democracy for Ekiti people in the June 21, 2014 Governorship election. He is still in the struggle to rescue the people from the claws of locusts masquerading as friends of the masses.

    Shortly after his victory at the polls in 2011, he instituted a programme called Abo Mi Re, which means “this is my scorecard” through which reeled off his empowerment programmes for his constituents and even beyond. This was in a bid to banish poverty among the masses.

    The project is the flagship of the numerous programmes he had instituted on this platform.

    The hospital, christened ‘Joan Taiwo Daramola Memorial Hospital’, built in memory of his late mother, was located in Ire Ekiti, his country home in Oye Local Government Area of Ekiti State.

    The number of eminent Nigerians who were at the well-attended inauguration ceremony of the hospital confirms that it was not a child’s play or one of those programmes shoddily conceived under the guise of empowerment to delude the people.

    The important personalities at the epoch-making event included were former Vice-President, Atiku Abubakar, Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal ex-Governors Kayode Fayemi, Segun Oni, Niyi Adebayo, State Chairman, APC, Chief Jide Awe and many others.

    Speaking at the event, Hon. Daramola said with the medical equipment installed in the hospital, it is now one of the best in the state.

    He said making it the best or creating unhealthy rivalry with other health institutions was not his intention, adding that his aim was to make it play complementary role to hospitals such as the Federal Medical Centre, Ido-Ekiti and the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti for efficient and robust medical services that can enhance the health  of the people.

    Hon. Daramola, who said Ekiti State has the highest life expectancy in Nigeria, which was put at an average of about 54 years, going by the records of the World Health Organisation, was emphatic that the 47-year average life expectancy in Nigeria is a shameful and frightening trend that needed to be combated at all costs.

    He expressed discontentment with the 54 years average age for Ekiti, even as he described it as too low to be happy about. He was of the view that health status of the masses determines their life expectancy.

    Considering the enormous resources available in the country, Daramola said no Nigerian would have been expected to die prematurely due to poor medical facilities, if the leaders have been prudent and focused. The lawmaker urged government at all levels to place high premium on adequate investment in the health sector to reverse the frightening level of low life expectancy in the country.

    Nostalgic of the experiences he had with her late mother, whom he described as  pillar of the family, Daramola clarified that the multi-million Naira hospital aims at contributing to the well-being of the downtrodden, who suffer ill-health daily for lack of adequate and affordable medical care.

    Hon. Daramola said Ekiti State’s status as having the highest life expectancy in Nigeria with an average age of 54 years, had confirmed the pervasive rot and mismanagement in the system.

    For smooth running of the hospital, the APC chieftain said he would partner with the Anglican Communion, owners of Ile Abiye Hospital in the running of the institution for optimal efficiency, saying his dream is to make the hospital one of the best in the country.

    He said: “I instituted what I called Abo mi re, which is my scorecard. This donation is the flagship of all that I have done for the people since they sent me to the National Assembly to represent them. Political office holders must learn to give back to the society. I have given out a lot of things. Everything I have done in the past may be denied or run out of season, but this one is the flagship and will be in use even when I am dead.

    “I built the hospital as a way of giving back to the people for entrusting in me their mandate in the House of Representatives. The stride is one of the ways to improve on the abysmally low life expectancy among the rank and file of the downtrodden masses.

    Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who inaugurated the project after being honoured with a traditional title by Onire of Ire-Ekiti, Oba Victor Bobade, lambasted President Goodluck Jonathan for running the most inept government in the history of the country.

    Particularly, Atiku said the country never had it so bad in the area of health care delivery, which he said is fast becoming the most retrogressive sector in Nigeria.

    Speaking about the state of the country’s economy, which he said brought about the pervasive rot that had permeated other sectors, the presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, said: “Nigeria was sick under PDP misrule and there must be serious efforts to salvage it.”

    He posited that the fortunes of the country would have been better managed if competent and those with passion for service like Daramola were elected into positions of authority, particularly the Presidency.

    Continuing, he said: “Certainly, Nigeria is not healthy. When you look at the issues of economy and insecurity in the country, you will know that certainly, Nigeria is not healthy. The only thing that can salvage Nigeria’s situation is to seize the opportunity to bring about a change by voting in APC.”

    Atiku, who praised Daramola for the initiative, advised the Ekiti people not to mortgage their future for a bag of rice.

    “I believe the people of Ekiti surely don’t need stomach infrastructure. Would you forego education for stomach infrastructure? Would you forego health care for stomach infrastructure? Would you forgo infrastructural development for stomach infrastructure?

    “Today Japan is the third biggest economy in the world. They don’t have the farmland that you have in Ekiti State but they have education and technology. Anybody who is telling you all you need is a bag of rice; no. No; Ekiti people, no.”

    The immediate past Governor of the State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and his predecessor, Mr Segun Oni, urged the people to give priority attention to infrastructural development, rather than anything that will serve immediate needs.

    They said: “For us as progressives, health is wealth. The health of our people matters most to us than simplistic and populist sharing of public money.” They described the initiative as a model that will improve the life expectancy of the people.

    A resident of the constituent and native of Ilupeju Ekiti, Mrs Mary Olatunji, described the lawmaker as godsend to Ekiti people. She said Daramola was one of the few Nigerians who put his political activism into play in his service to the people.

    “Hon Daramola is our own. He can win election anytime here not minding the party in power. He always put the masses first and the way he does his things is unique. He has brought uniqueness to governance in Ekiti,” she said.

    Mrs. Olatunji said the people of Oye and Ikole Local Government Area can now seek medical help in the hospital as alternative to hospitals in Ido and Ado-Ekiti.

     

  • President Jonathan bares his fangs: Events in Ekiti a mere foot note

    President Jonathan bares his fangs: Events in Ekiti a mere foot note

    And if the president had once claimed that 13 is greater than 16 in the governors’ forum affair, who is a governor not to uphold the harebrained action of seven where eighteen is stipulated?

    This is more than serious…why must everything, from federal to state, be so much brigandage? Lord have mercy!’, wrote Professor Mobolaji Aluko on the ekitipanupo web portal, commenting on the sealing of the National Assembly by the Nigerian police  as well as  tear gassing its members on that  unfortunate day when  all  of  President Jonathan’s make-belief  as to being a pacifist got  completely blown up to smithereens as  no  Nigerian Inspector General of Police, born of  woman,  not to talk of a mere  state  Commissioner of Police,  as is being claimed, would dare enact that horror  movie without the express say so of the President.

    Happily, if Professor Aluko was still wondering as to what has befallen the country under the Jonathan presidency, not so a perspicacious Tatalo who, in his column of Sunday, 17 Novembe, 2014  in The Nation had written, inter alia, as follows under the Title: Political War Games In Nigeria – “It would be politically foolish and obtuse to the bargain to ever imagine that Jonathan and his strategists are unwise enough not to realize his electoral limitations at this crucial moment. If that is so, it brings us to the central thesis of this piece. Jonathan and his handlers  may very well not be preparing for an electoral competition but for a physical conquest in the guise of a democratic quest”. Evidence of that now abound as we would show in this article.

    In the meantime, not knowing that what  Ekiti people currently  regard as  the embarrassing dividends of their decision of 21 June, 2014  are  nothing more than the dictates of  a man dead set on contesting and winning an election, no matter what  that entails for the nation, I am convinced that with what happened at the National Assembly this past week,  they must by now have begun to see how exactly they have been badly had. For confirmation of that, simultaneously as the National Assembly members were being shut out from the House, the Ekiti state House of Assembly, in a most macabre undertaking,  was deceiving itself into believing that 7 of its 26  members can impeach a speaker where the constitution prescribes two thirds, which is 18.  I saw one of the seven on Channels television during the  past week making what he considers a justification of their illogic and I saw perfectly why Ekiti has become the butt of jokes the world over as a visit to a Facebook  account will more than confirm. However, the worst was to come when the state governor popped up claiming it is that illegal  ‘speaker he was going to work with, emphasizing, repeatedly, that he had no apologies. What a land of honour gone awry! And if the President had once claimed that 13 is greater than 16 in the governors’ forum affair, who is a governor not to uphold the harebrained action of seven where eighteen is stipulated.

    Nor did they stop there. As contained in a Press Release by Wole Olujobi, Press Adviser to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, the legal as distinct from the rabid impostor, “the Police and ?the Department of State Security have withdrawn their personnel from the security teams of the Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr Adewale Omirin, and the  Deputy Speaker, Chief Adetunji Orisalade. This followed the  invasion of the Speaker’s Lodge this evening by Mr Dele Olugbemi, the purported new Speaker, who led PDP members in a forceful occupation of the building’.  Again it should be obvious to Nigerians from these  events  that Abuja is the falconer and that the state governor is nothing more than the President’s viceroy in Ado-Ekiti.

    It certainly cannot get more scary but only a fool would claim not to have seen all these coming given President Jonathan’s single-minded ambition,  after six years already spent on the post,  not only to contest, but to be declared winner in the  2015 presidential election. Indeed, given the unequaled success of their newly fangled election rigging tactics  which we saw deployed  in Ekiti in June, arising from which the President asked some foreign Ambassadors in the country to inform their Heads of state that the 2015 elections would be a successful and seamless excise, even where he had not proposed  a single effort at improving our chaotic and fraudulent electoral process inthos six years, it is obvious that  Nigerians must be prepared for more of the same as these people are not preparing for an election in its true sense, but as Tatalo put it, a physical capture. I just hope the oposition isbeing properly warned as it will no longer be able totalk of a failure of intelligence. Both PP and the President have shown enough of their hands.

    So successful was their scientific rigging in Ekiti on 21 June 2014 that  because there was not a single reported case of ballot snatching or  illegal thumb printing but  rather, a calm and  peaceful  voting, Ekiti people  believed they got what they voted on that day even where neither the PDP nor its candidate had done a single positive thing for the state and the people  for the past four years apat from the emergency rice and beans which in no way compared with all that Fayemi had done in office to cater to the needs of both the needy and the general populace. I  can understand, however, that  that the 20,000 ghost workers he eliminated by his introduction of e-payment to the government’s financial system rankled amongst the rogues. But I tell them, what they are celebrating is science, miraculously, but clinically settling matters long before the voting proper. And since VANISHING INK, instead of the constitutionally prescribed INDELIBLE ink  was what INEC  provided voters, the deed was done, even without a whimper. For those in doubt, I  once again ask  them to Google: NIKUV and the Zimbabwean presidential elections as well as NASENI and its own  findings on the 2013 Presidential election in Zimbabwe,  another African country. So PDP was not inventing the wheel but merely catching in on the new fad in election rigging. As to those who question why there were no riots, I  say, how could any sensible person react to an apparently ‘flawless’ election, even if the state was not completely militarily locked down. And by the way, were there any cries of anguish from the victims of  atomic bombing  in Hiroshima? Science is clinical enough to ensure that the victims could not react. Instead, where they are not dead, the victims are put in a permanent state of delirium; the very state Ekiti presently finds itself though unknown to many.

    But  all these are mere preparations for the  big prize: the 2015 presidential election. And  so Nigerians, not only in Ekiti but in all the Southwest states  as well  as others like Akwa Ibom and Rivers, where you see governors or Abuja sponsored contestants daring everybody,  insisting it is their way or the high way;  in Kwara, where they hate Bukola Saraki with a passion, Kano, because  they still cannot imagine a triumphant Emir Sanusi Lamido, in spite of all the make belief and some other state must brace up  for the Ekiti treatment.  Photocromism, otherwise known as scientific rigging, in  its various variants, will be deployed in these states by their rogue scientists who are mostly from a Middle East country  whose national economy thrives most  on the military industrial philosophy.

    As things stand today, President Jonathan’s strategists have their plans for ‘pacifying’ each geo-political zone to ensure that zones with high voter populations are compromised and others leaning more towards the opposition APC are completely messed up. It is this that accounts for the shenanigans  we are  witnessing in the distribution   of Permanent Voter Cards and the  man to pity here is Chairman  Jega who is not complicit since he is not even trusted. Instead, middling officers in the IT departments  with, possibly a dedicated director,  are in charge of all the schemes to add to or subtract from the number of voters in each zone as illicitly decreed by the men of power. The Northeast,, unfortunately, shot itself in the foot when the likes of Modu Sheriff deliberately encouraged illiteracy, and ended up as the birthplace of Boko Haram which authorities have done everything to ensure thrives until the 2015 election is over.  In the huge Northwest and North Central, what used to be occasional bloodletting between  the various tribes has taken a life of its own and in the Southwest, it is the turn of the MACHO MEN to rein in  the Yoruba, a distinguished people with thousands of years behind them. As for the South South and the South East, they are already presumed safe and delivered.

  • Ekiti College marks 60th anniversary

    Old students of Ekiti Parapo College, Ido Ekiti (EPCOSA) have inaugurated a four-point developmental road map for their alma mater, which will focus on the need to promote, sustain and preserve the socio-cultural legacies of the 60-year historic institution.

    President of the college’s Old Students association, Ogbeni Lanre Adesuyi, made the intentions of the Association known at a briefing in Lagos to announce the 60th anniversary of the college.

    He said the celebration of EKPACO’s Diamond Jubilee will hold from November 24 to 30, 2014 on the College premises in Ido Ekiti.

    Adesuyi said the theme of the anniversary is “Celebrating the past, consolidating the present, building the future” and hoped it would, among other things, help to foster existing good relationships among members of the old students association in accordance with the school’s motto ‘Agbajopo Owo’.

    He further explained that the four-point objectives of the developmental plan are “to reflect on the evolution of EKPACO over 60 years; to refresh old school ties/friendships; to support the school by investing in its development and to mentor students of the institution who are tomorrow’s leaders.”

    Adesuye named old students of the school to include former Military Governors of the old Western Region, late Lt. Col. Adekunle Fajuyi and Major Gen. Robert Adeyinka Adebayo; former Commissioner for Education of Western State, Prof F.O. Dosekun and, particularly, the Premier of the Western Region, Nigeria, the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who described the college as “a very courageous and impressive effort; a monument to the foresight and self-sacrifice of the highly progressive Ekiti people.”

     

  • Ekiti situation like military rule, says lawmaker

    Ekiti situation like military rule, says lawmaker

    The lawmaker representing Irepodun/Ifelodun 2 in the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Ayodeji Olurotimi Odu, has likened the situation in the state to military rule.

    Odu, who spoke to reporters in Lagos yesterday, said this was why the House could not hold plenary yesterday.

    The chairman, Legal and Judicial Committee, said there were a lot of illegalities in the state and that the House had gone through a lot recently.

    “The House is being blackmailed, intimidated and harassed constantly in an attempt to make us submit to the demand of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that all members should join their party.

    “We have been offered all sorts of inducements but the 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) members stood their ground.

    “So the government has resulted to outright blackmail, intimidation and harassment.

    “There were a lot of things to be done; the House has to approve the list of commissioners and board members; even the appropriation bill has to be passed.

    “How do we do all these things when he is chasing members who would help him to do these things? We should have a harmonious working relationship and whoever wants to stay in any party let him stay there.

     “You can’t wish APC dead in Ekiti. The party still has a large following in the state. We cannot sit until these issues are resolved.

    “What is happening in Ekiti is not ideal for democracy; the judiciary is being harassed, now the legislature is going through the same experience. Where will all this lead the state?”

  • Ekiti varsity shut down

    Ekiti varsity shut down

    A week after the Ekiti State University (EKSU) in Ado-Ekiti re-opened for a new session, the campus has been shut down by its workers over unpaid salaries and allowances. Students are also threatening a showdown with the management for what they call ‘anti-student policies’ and ‘suppression of unionism’. ADIO BAMIDELE (Accountancy) reports.

    All is not well at the Ekiti State University (EKSU). Seven days after students resumed for a new session, the university’s chapter of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) aborted the resumption, shutting down the school over unpaid salaries.

    For three months, the ASUU said, its members have not received salaries. This development, the lecturers’ body said, has caused untold hardship to members.

    While lecturers have vowed not to return to the classroom unless their salaries are paid, students are also threatening a showdown with the management over increment in fees and proscription of Students’ Union activities.

    After a meeting on November 4, ASUU members declared an indefinite strike, saying the management did not show conviction that it was ready to pay the money anytime soon. A lecturer, who craved anonymity, said: “Apart from the unpaid salaries, we are being owed allowances, such as extra class hour allowance and excess work pay, but the management does not care a hoot about our wellbeing. We have explored every civilised avenue to reach out to the management but they don’t seem to understand that language of dialogue. This is why we are on strike. Students have just resumed and they need to be in class but how do you expect us to teach with empty stomach?”

    Students are pushing for the dissolution of the management for increasing tuition fees. They are not happy with what they call “anti-student policy” of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof Oladipupo Aina. This, they said, could disrupt th e academic calendar. The students allege that the management has been suppressing students’ union activities to prevent resistance from students after jerking up fees.

    A former Students’ Union leader, who did not want his name in print, said: “Our demand is lawful. In other schools, as students move from one level to another, the lesser the fees become.

    “But here in EKSU, the higher the level of study, the higher the fee students pay. Now, they have just increased the  fees without reason. That is pure extortion.”

    A 300-Level Geology student said: “ The tuition fee is N50,000 without other fees, including medical bills, which is N5,000, Internet service N5,000, sport N7,000 and field trip, N10,000, which varies according to departments. But we pay double for these fees because students of Geology and Psychology pay for field trips after paying with the school fee.”

    The students also alleged victimisation by the management, saying the authorities suppressed unionism.

    A student, Niyi Ojekunle, said: “We are supposed to have Students’ Union election this semester but the management told us we cannot conduct the election until 75 per cent of students pay school fees. Which school in Nigeria does that?”

    Another student, who simply identified himself as Matthew, said: “The union was returned last year during the first semester but the constitution states that there shall be election every second semester. Because of the numerous hiccups caused by the management, we had to conduct the election in the first semester of last session. We are in the same situation again but they don’t want us to hold the election.”

    When the aggrieved students met with the Dean of Students’ Affairs (DSA), Prof Issac Adanlawo, CAMPUSLIFE learnt that they were told 75 per cent of students must pay school fees before the election could be held. Adanlawo said a comprehensive list of registered students, which would facilitate the election, was yet to be ready.

    The DSA added that since the union’s constitution allows only bonafide students to vote, the election may not hold until students pay their fees. The dean denied that the management did not have the interest of students at heart, wondering why the VC inaugurated a transition committee if the management wanted to suppress unionism.

    A student, who identified himself as Saheed, said the management was delaying the union election to prevent a protest against its plan to increase the school fee by N5,000. “They don’t want a students’ body that would move against a planned increment of the fee. Our parents still believe the new governor would reduce the school fee; this may have been the reason many students delay the payment,” Saheed said.

    It was learnt that students planned a protest to the office of the Governor, Mr Ayo Fayose, last Monday, but the demonstration was rescheduled till further notice.

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that the ASUU members, led by their chairman, Prof Olufayo Olu-Olu, met with  Fayose on Saturday night to resolve the issue. But the meeting ended in stalemate, resulting in further closure of the school.

    Speaking to our correspondent on Sunday,  Olu-Olu, said: “Yes, we met with the governor on Saturday but the meeting was inconclusive. We were not satisfied with the government position and the campus remains closed until further notice. We are meeting the governor again next week and we hope we would have productive deliberation.”