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Tag: Kayode Fayemi

  • Tanker fire: Fayemi consoles families

    Tanker fire: Fayemi consoles families

    •’We’ll provide alternative route for trucks’

    Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has commiserated with the families of the victims of last Wednesday’s tanker fire in Aramoko-Ekiti.

    Six people died and property worth millions of naira were destroyed in the fire.

    Fayemi, who visited the families on Sunday, described the accident as “unfortunate.”

    He said the government would provide alternative routes for trucks and ban them from town centres.

    Fayemi said if the Federal Government had paid the N12 billion Ekiti spent on federal roads, the state would have built the abandoned Iyin-Itawure road.

    The governor pledged that a bypass road would be built behind Erio-Ekiti and dedicated to trucks.

    He said: “We cannot continue this way. This brings to the fore the challenges we are facing fixing Federal Government roads. As challenging as things are for Ekiti State, we are owed over N12 billion spent on fixing federal roads. If that money had been returned, we would have embarked on the Iyin-Itawure road, which would have taken many vehicles off this route, so that our people would not be exposed to drunken drivers or break failure resulting in terrible and unfortunate deaths.”

    Decrying the spate of tanker accidents on the Efon-Erio-Aramoko axis, the governor said men of the State Traffic Management Agency (EKSTMA) would be deployed on the route to ensure that drivers obey traffic rules.

    He said many accidents on the route were caused by excessive speeding and brake failure.

    Fayemi said the only survivor of last Wednesday’s tanker fire was receiving treatment at the State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH) in Ado-Ekiti.

    He visited the parents of Ahmed Bakare (16), an SS2 pupil of Aramoko District Commercial Secondary School, who died in the accident.

    The late Ahmed, who was the school’s time keeper, was in a shop to fix his phone when the incident occurred.

    It was learnt that the brake of a petrol-laden tanker failed and the truck somersaulted and exploded, destroying houses and killing about six people.

    The repairer’s shop was among structures destroyed.

    Condoling with Ahmed’s parents, Mr. Ganiyu and Mrs. Iyabode Bakare, Fayemi said it was sad that a promising boy was lost in “such an unfortunate situation.”

    The Alara of Aramoko-Ekiti, Oba Olu Adeyemi; the lawmaker representing the constituency, Mr. Gbenga Odebunmi; Fayemi’s Special Adviser on the Governor’s Office Chief Abiodun Akin Fasae and Ekiti West Local Government Secretary Akogun Tai Oguntayo accompanied the governor.

     

     

  • Ekiti: AIG assures of peaceful poll

    Ekiti: AIG assures of peaceful poll

    THE Ekiti State government has said it is ready to work with the police and other security agencies to ensure peace during the electioneering period.

    The governorship election is slated for June 21.

    Governor Kayode Fayemi spoke yesterday in his office while hosting the the Assistant Inspector-General (AIG) of Police in charge of Zone 8, Mr. Christopher Dega.

    He said the peace in the state was the result of the cordial relationship between his administration and the police.

    Fayemi, who was represented by his deputy, Prof Modupe Adelabu, said his administration would sustain the good working relationship.

    He said Ekiti peope are peaceful, hospitable and civilised.

    The governor hailed officers and men of the Ekiti Police Command for their dedication to duty, saying it has reduced crime.

    He urged them to re-double their efforts to sustain the peace.

    Dega said he was on a familiarisation visit to Ekiti, which is one of the states under Zone 8.

    He said he would meet political stakeholders on the need to maintain peace before, during and after the election.

    Dega said his men were prepared to ensure a hitch-free election and urged residents to be law-abiding.

    He is expected to visit the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti, Oba Rufus Adejugbe.

     

     

  • Ekiti SSG: large turnout reflects Fayemi’s success

    Ekiti SSG: large turnout reflects Fayemi’s success

    Secretary to the Ekiti State Government (SSG) Dr. Ganiyu Owolabi has attributed the large turnout for the registration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) membership in the state to the successful implementation of the Kayode Fayemi administration’s Eight-Point Agenda.

    The SSG spoke at Ilupeju-Ekiti after monitoring the registration in the area.

    He said over 60 people were registered at each of the units he visited in the morning and over 115 by 3.30pm. The SSG said the party achieved the feat although the first day of the exercise fell on a market day.

    He urged party members, who had not registered, to do so today, the last day of the exercise, following a two-day extension.

    Dr Owolabi noted that the registration would enable the party plan its programmes towards future elections.

    The SSG stressed that APC would use its register to separate genuine members from fake ones and prevent the fake from disrupting the chances of genuine members.

     

  • A vote for continuity in Ekiti

    A vote for continuity in Ekiti

    In this piece, the Coordinator of ‘IKF 2014’ in Baltimore, United States, Adegboyega Dahunsi, justifies the push for continuity in Ekiti State by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

    THE Kayode Fayemi Administration can be compared to a Messianic era in the life of Ekiti people and a breeze of change needed in a peculiarly catastrophic atmosphere totally embelished in administrative woes that have befallen the state in the past. Governor Fayemi, unlike several other people that had a diaspora experience, has utilised his encounter with the outside world in a benevolent manner for the progress.

    As a result of his performance, everyone in Ekiti is already clamouring for his second term. I just read on a post by the President of CACOL testifying to the present skyline of Ekiti and his physical encounter with the streets of Ekiti. Here is a man that I believe is not from Ekiti, but just a fair advocate of truth in all the assignments of his NGO. I was even surprised that an entertainer from Lagos, Daddy Shokey, mentioned the same thing about the experience he had in Ekiti. The business mogul, Aliko Dangote said the same. These are people that are not indegenes of Ekiti. Fayemi’s records have been praised by all and sundry. People in the Diaspora all over have joined our movement and I can’t believe within a couple of weeks we launched it in New York, they called me from Europe that they wanted a chapter. All these are due to reports we get when people travel back home and see things themselves. Immediately, we launched the Ekiti State chapter and people are happy about it. Ekiti has seen changes it deserves and there is no going back. We have to move forward.

    The reason is his attitudes towards Ekiti people. A generous,faithful man of the people who does not believe in partisan politics. Fayemi sees Ekiti people as one.He maintains that unity that binds Ekiti together and make the concept EKITI PARAPO (Ekiti united) his focal point. Every Ekiti from all works of life is treated equally under his canopy. He’s open and basically egalitarian. So, there is no apprehension as we believe he will always prevail. Other parties are a mere reflection of fundamental rights and beauty of democracy.Let them bring more parties. We are not intimidated since we all know our benefactor and our future is important to us: a future we can never compromise for a morsel of bread. We are sure Fayemi.

    We are not bothered by the action of anybody! This is politics and we are not even concerned about a mere political gymnastics, which may be due to personal ambition. Opeyemi Bamidele has the right to his ambition. At the end of the day, I believe he too will be eager to come to table with us and contribute his expertise. We will not discriminate.At the end of the day everyone will see the uniqueness of Governor Kayode Fayemi.

    I strongly believe that Governor Fayemi is doing a lot in the area of security. There will not be any bloodshed and the atmosphere will be conducive to achieving our political goals.

    Just like i mentioned ealier we need to roll out some publicity of educative jingles to sensitize our people:The police and law enforcement agencies must be up and doing especially during the election time and some vigilante or security bodies should be set up in other to give useful information of any suspicion anywhere.This may be done in a convert manner so as not to arouse the awareness of any potential evil planner.In any area that proves a bit edgy or stubborn,there is a tendency for the law enforcements to do their job in other to deter other laxity.Human psychology is basically the same all over even in western worlds but the efforts to put things in check is the only thing that makes the difference.Besides all this,we are positively hopeful everything would be free and fair in a circumstance that Governor Kayode Fayemi is overwhelmingly loved all over the state.

     

  • Fayose’s baleful rapprochement with Ekiti electorate

    Fayose’s baleful rapprochement with Ekiti electorate

    IT took him a while before he supplanted the leaders of his political party, but after last year’s coup de main, the former governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, has seemed all dressed up and nowhere to go. It was not hard for him to make his moves, for he is rough-hewn, and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti, equally guileful, but it has been harder for him to device a message for the future and imbue it with life. In his first coming, begun in 2003 but aborted before he completed one term, he caught popular imagination, provided the so-called dividends of democracy for his people with nothing more than the giddy excitement of a local government chairman, and because he was impulsive and populist, he did many other irrational things. In short, he so vulgarised governance that his embarrassed people and party leaders performed political euthanasia on him in 2006.

    Eight years later, and with no evidence whatsoever that he had learnt or done anything but fine-tune his quirky political tactics of arm-twisting opponents, Mr Fayose has reappeared on the state’s political scene selling himself as a rejuvenated politician prepared for the arduous task of shepherding a wholesome state, as a mature statesman eager to forgive his enemies, and as a pragmatist capable of winning elections should his party, which he has virtually hijacked, give him a second chance. No one knows what residue of wisdom still lies in his party or how much character still inheres in his party leaders and supporters. But should they con themselves into making their now mature arm-twister candidate of the PDP in the June 2014 governorship poll, the state’s political combat will witness lively twists and feints.

    Mr Fayose doesn’t know how to play softball. Street smart, boisterous, and with a rage as incandescent as molten magma, he will find himself taking on two equally lively opponents the ambitious and feisty Opeyemi Bamidele, and the mercurial but soft-spoken Kayode Fayemi. The restless Mr Bamidele, it is known, runs on a cocktail of messianic formulae designed, as he put it bravely, to salvage the state form the hands of the uncooperative Dr Fayemi. And the latter, who is the current governor, runs on a cocktail of public works projects he is convinced will remain unparalleled for some time to come. Beside these two gentlemen of the Labour Party (LP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) respectively, the feistiness of Mr Fayose threatens to be ordinary.

    What is crucial to Mr Fayose, notwithstanding, is that he is coming into the combat with considerable self-belief and chutzpah. After making peace, as it were, with those who undid him in the clumsy impeachment of 2006 that terminated his governorship, he believes he would be able to sustain the right momentum into the June race. In addition, he has promised to spend just one term if elected. As Olusegun Obasanjo, a former president, and President Goodluck Jonathan have shown so numbingly, the seductive talk of one term is pure baloney. The ordinary Nigerian politician is nearer in habit to President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe than to former President Nelson Mandela of South Africa. Not only can the Nigerian politician not be trusted, they also nurture an incestuous romance with power.

    It may never be known whether Ekiti people have forgiven Mr Fayose in accordance with his pleas, but he seems more in need of forgiveness than to forgive anyone. Yet, even if they manage to smile at his charades, his chances of picking the PDP ticket are as remote as the scarifying peaks of the Himalayas. But let him go ahead and make peace, since the state obviously needs it for the June poll. At least it will salve his corroded conscience and prepare him for life after politics.

  • Be vigilant, Fayemi tells APC members

    Be vigilant, Fayemi tells APC members

    Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) members to participate in the activities organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the June 21 governorship election.

    He spoke at the weekend in Iyin-Ekiti at a meeting of APC leaders, hosted by former Governor Niyi Adebayo.

    Fayemi said members must monitor the electoral process to ensure that it conforms to the Electoral Act.

    Urging members to be prepared for the task ahead, he explained that the APC membership registration, which begins in Ekiti tomorrow, would be followed by the INEC stakeholders’ forum, manual registration of voters, confirmation of names and distribution of permanent voter cards.

    Fayemi said the APC membership registration was aimed at authenticating members and would be done at polling units across the state.

    He said: “We have to be prepared for the task ahead. The registration process starts on February 5, which is aimed at authenticating members of the party. The INEC process will follow while the INEC stakeholders’ forum comes up on February 12. That will include manual voters’ registration, confirmation of names, distribution of permanent voter cards, validation and continuous registration of new voters until campaigns formally begin on March 23. I urge members to be alert and be part of the process. We must monitor it well and do everything within the constitution and Electoral Act to promote a credible, fair and free process.”

    The governor urged aspirants for political offices in 2015 to work for the party’s success in the governorship poll, adding that victory in the June 21 poll will motivate members to work harder in 2015.

    Adebayo, who is the APC interim national vice-chairman, Southwest, urged members to troop out for the registration; adding that it was one way to work towards APC’s victory in the election.

    He backed Fayemi, saying Ekiti would witness more transformation, if Fayemi is re-elected.

    Director-General of the Fayemi Campaign Organisation Mr. Bimbo Daramola, who is a member of the House of Representatives, described the belief that no governor could be re-elected in the state as a myth, saying Fayemi’s achievements were evident and speak for him.

    Daramola said besides Adebayo, Fayemi is the only governor who finished his four-year term, adding: “So there is no jinx around re-election since his predecessors never completed their terms, let alone seek re-election.”

    The meeting was witnessed by a crowd of party faithful.

     

     

  • Be vigilant, Fayemi tells APC members

    Be vigilant, Fayemi tells APC members

    Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has urged All Progressives Congress (APC) members to participate actively in the activities organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the June 21 governorship election.

    He spoke at the weekend in Iyin-Ekiti at a meeting of APC leaders hosted by former Governor Niyi Adebayo.

    Fayemi said members must monitor the electoral process to ensure that it conforms to the provisions of the electoral act and leads to a credible election.

    Urging members to be prepared for the task ahead, he explained that the APC membership registration, which begins in Ekiti tomorrow, would be followed by the INEC stakeholders’ forum, manual registration of voters, confirmation of names and distribution of permanent voter cards.

    Fayemi said the APC membership registration was aimed at authenticating members and will be done at polling units across the state.

    He said: “We have to be prepared for the task ahead of us. The registration process starts on February 5, which is aimed at authenticating members of the party. The INEC process will follow while the INEC stakeholders’ forum comes up on February 12. That will include manual voters’ registration, confirmation of names, distribution of permanent voter cards, validation and continuous registration of new voters until campaigns formally begin on March 23. I urge members to be alert and be part of the process. We must monitor it well and do everything within the constitution and electoral act to promote a credible, fair and free process.”

    The governor urged aspirants for various political offices in 2015 to work for the party’s success in the governorship poll, adding that victory in the June 21 poll will motivate members to work harder in 2015.

    Adebayo, who is the APC Interim National Vice-Chairman, Southwest, urged members to troop out for the registration; adding that it was one of the ways to work towards the APC’s victory in the forthcoming election.

    He backed Fayemi’s candidacy, saying Ekiti would witness more transformation, if Fayemi is re-elected.

    Director-General of the Fayemi Campaign Organisation Mr. Bimbo Daramola, who is a member of the House of Representatives, described the belief that no governor can be re-elected in the state as myth, saying Fayemi’s achievements are evident and speak for him.

    Daramola said aside Adebayo, Fayemi is the only governor who has finished his four-year term, adding: “So there is no jinx around re-election since his predecessors never completed their terms, let alone seek re-election.”

    The meeting was witnessed by a mammoth crowd of party faithful.

  • Ekiti schools get instructional aids

    Ekiti schools get instructional aids

    The Ekiti State government yesterday distributed textbooks and instructional materials to primary and junior secondary schools.

    The colourful event was held on the premises of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) on Okeesa Street in Ado-Ekiti.

    Governor Kayode Fayemi, who was represented by his deputy, Prof. Modupe Fayemi, described the gesture as a demonstration of the commitment to qualitative education.

    He said: “The distribution of these textbooks, library resource materials and other materials, jointly provided by the state government and the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), is meant to strengthen Agenda 4 of the 8-Point Agenda of this administration.”

    Fayemi said his administration considered the provision of reading materials and libraries as important.

    He listed the provision of a conducive environment for teaching and learning as well as the motivation of the workers as some of the administration’s efforts to boost education.

    “Now that our teachers are motivated and the Professional/Rural Teachers’ Allowance has been approved to boost morale, these instructional materials will be put to maximum use by the pupils with the full cooperation and supervision of the teachers.”

    Prof. Adelabu, who chairs SUBEB, urged officials of the board and the Ministry of Education to distribute the materials equitably.

    Mr. Sunday Arema, who spoke for UBEC, said the passion with which the administration was pursuing its education agenda was commendable.

    State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Mr. Kayode Akosile said the intervention of the Fayemi administration had restored the glory of education in the state.

    He said posterity would never forget the administration’s efforts to give Ekiti children a better future.

    A pupil of AUD Pilot School in Ajilosun, Yusuf Rabiu, thanked the governor and assured him that the pupils would make the best use of the materials.

    Also at the event were Commissioner for Education, Science & Technology Kehinde Ojo; representative of the School-Based Management Committee (SMBC) Chief Sylvester Adeyanju; Chairman of the State Teaching Service Commission Bayo Adeniran; representative of the Association of Primary School Headteachers of Nigeria (AOPSHON) Ola Akintoye; Special Adviser to the Governor on Chieftaincy Affairs Aderemi Ajayi and former Commissioner for Education Chief Bisi Egbeyemi.

     

  • Magic of a governor’s village meeting

    Magic of a governor’s village meeting

    Then Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State assumed office in October 2010 and promised to run a participatory government, not many took him serious because such promises have become a hollow ritual of previous administrations. He soon proved them wrong and changed their skepticism to optimism when in November 2011, he started what he called pre-budget village square meetings, visiting Ekiti communities. The style was novel and the village square meeting was strange to the people who were used to empty promises in the past. He told them to choose three priority projects that each community wanted included in the budget of the following year and they did. At least one of the projects chosen by each community was included in the following year’s budget (2012). The people became more interested in the pre-budget village square meeting in 2012 against the 2013 budget. He repeated the meeting with all Ekiti State communities in 2012 and more projects were executed in the communities in 2013 such that by the end of this year, over 1,600 projects are either completed or on-going in many communities. The village square meetings have become so popular and believable that the monarchs and their subjects in all Ekiti communities now look forward to it as a sure way of getting projects sited in their town or village.

    Another project that has worked like magic in the communities is the State Assisted Community Projects Initiatives (SACPI) which the governor introduced in June 2013 whereby funds were released to Community Development Associations to complete projects in their communities. Such community projects are Civic Centres and Kings’ palaces as the case may be. Most of these projects have been on for years and many have been abandoned due to lack of funds despite yearly celebration of ‘towns’ days’ to raise funds. N600 million has been distributed to execute 176 SACPI projects.

    The effect of the SACPI on the communities was unimaginable and this came to the fore when the governor embarked on this year’s pre-budget village square meetings making it the third since he assumed office. No wonder, governor Mimiko of  neighboring Ondo State recently adopted the programme. The last edition which took place in November as usual was unique in many ways most especially because the governor visited 130 communities out of the 131 in the state as against the usual practice of meeting the town representatives at the local government headquarters. The governor walked in the midst of the people to inspect and commission projects. The tour was a confirmation that Governor Fayemi is a man of his words and thus a restoration of trust in governance; it was an avenue to commission many of the projects which had been completed especially the State Community Assisted Projects which were completed in just six months by the communities after receiving grants from the state government; it enabled the governor to know how his administration was perceived by the ordinary people in the communities; it revealed what amenities the people are lacking as some demands are common to all the communities; it is a stock staking exercise.

    The most interesting of this is the speed with which the communities completed their projects, using their own local contractors supervised by the town union representatives and monitored by the Ministry of Rural Development and empowerment. The money given to the communities were judiciously spent going by the standard of the Civic Centers and palaces completed.

    The meeting afforded the governor the opportunity to know what the people of the communities lack. For instance, it was revealed that despite the giant strides and ceaseless efforts of the governor in the provision of potable water (five mini water works were constructed and commissioned in 2012), as many as 45 communities complained about lack of potable water. This is because almost all the pipes in the state which were laid since 1960s have gone rusty and new pipes are being laid all over the state in the last three years. Apart from this, the major dams in the state like Ureje, Ero, Egbe and Itapaji are undergoing major repairs and would be connected to the various pipes as soon as possible. This is why water is a major priority in next year’s budget. Sinking of boreholes was approved for about 18 communities with acute water shortage as an interim measure. Some communities also demanded for transformers and this would be accommodated in the 2014 budget even though matters of electricity are federal. The government has purchased and distributed over 100 transformers so far.

    The most popular programme of the governor over which he received thanks, gifts and prayers from old men and women is the social security for the elderly where they earn a N5, 000 stipends monthly which has been understudied and adopted by four other states in Nigeria. He also received the praises and commendation from virtually all communities over the renovation of all secondary schools; free education and distributing laptops to secondary students; ongoing renovation of all General Hospitals; youth volunteers who earn N10,000 monthly, free health mission which had been done a record seven times and have benefited about 363,050 Ekiti citizens, free health mission for traditional rulers ,their households and chiefs called Ilera Laafin; new cars for the traditional rulers; recruitment into government agencies such as EKSTMA, Peace Corps and Fire Services; the Conditional Cash Transfer where vulnerable women are given N5,000 monthly stipend.

    Of course, most communities thanked the governor for fixing their roads both at the state and local government levels. Many roads that have become impassable over the years in the state have been fixed and the communities which the roads passed through are very grateful. The 5km per local government project whereby a total of 81.2km of roads have been constructed across the communities in the 16 LGAs and a large chunk of Ekiti communities have benefitted from this while a total of 902 kilometers of Federal, State and Local Government roads have been rehabilitated, reconstructed and constructed. The few communities that did not benefit from the 5km project have been accommodated in the next phase in 2014 budget which is over 91 kilometres.

    Another important point to note is the appreciation from communities where the governor had resuscitated moribund state owned companies such as Ire burnt bricks in Ire-Ekiti and Road Materials Company (ROMACO) in Igbemo-Ekiti. The people of Ikogosi were too happy to receive the governor because of the way he has transformed Ikogosi Warm Springs resort from an abode of reptiles to a world class resort centre which has  become a reference point in the tourism industry.  The communities believed in the efforts of the government to revive agriculture as attested to by the fact that Ekiti has the highest yield in cassava in Nigeria for this year. Some communities donated land to the government for commercial agriculture so that the youths of such towns could also benefit from the Youths in Commercial Agriculture Development (YCAD). The governor preached peace in all the communities he visited. In spite of the meager resources of the state, the governor has been able to do a lot of things such that the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe called him a magician during his pre-budget tour of Ado-Ekiti. Presently, the State Mega Pavillion which is like the Eagle Square in Abuja is nearing completion, the new Government House is ongoing as well as the Ultra modern  Civic Centre.

    Some indices of development in Ekiti state explained why the governor was well received by Ekiti communities during the pre budget meeting. According to the Human Development Report (2012), Ekiti is described as the most conducive environment to live for long and healthy living with a life expectancy average of 55 years. Ekiti has the lowest infant and maternal mortality rate and the lowest HIV/AIDS infection in the country. The state has the highest pupil enrolment and the least out-of-school children in Nigeria.

    The governor bagged the Governor of the year award by Leadership newspapers in 2012, the SAMSUNG Awards as the best Governor in Africa that invested in Education, the ZIK Leadership award in 2013 and recently, he bagged Good Governance award from the Nigerian/American Chamber of Commerce. In September 2013, the governor was invited to the United Nations session on the basis that his state, Ekiti has met many of the Millineum Development Goals (MDGs). The village square meeting is so magical and infectious that Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State has adopted it.

    •Jamiu is Senior Special Assistant to Governor Fayemi on Research and Documentation.

     

  • Fayose threatens to sue Fayemi

    Fayose threatens to sue Fayemi

    Former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose has threatened to sue Governor Kayode Fayemi for his comment on the poultry project initiated by his administration.

    On Monday, Fayemi said Fayose’s poultry project could not be revived like the projects of other administrations because it was designed to fail.

    Fayose is on trial for allegedly mismanaging funds meant for the project.

    His counsel, Ajayi Owoseni, said yesterday that his client would sue Fayemi for commenting on a matter that was in court, adding: “In law, nobody is allowed to comment on any matter that is in court.”

    Owoseni, who is also the director-general of the Ayo Fayose Campaign Organisation (AFCO), said suing Fayemi and his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Yinka Oyebode, for contempt of court was necessary to preserve the dignity of the judiciary and check others.

    He alleged that Fayemi was trying to misinform the public, adding that he lacked correct information about the project.

    Owoseni urged the governor to seek information on the scope of work done before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stopped the project.