There is unease in Ekiti State over the approval and purchase of a 2018 Lexus LX 570 Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) valued at N75 million for Governor Ayo Fayose as a “parting gift”.

The purchase is causing anxiety in the civil service as fear grips officers involved in the deal ahead of the change of government on October 16.

It was learnt that the vehicle was bought about a month ago but our reporter sighted the documents on the deal yesterday.

A civil servant, who spoke in confidence, described the deal as “strange, suspicious and unheard of” at a time government workers and retirees are owed salary arrears.

A memo for the purchase of the vehicle emanated from the Political and Economic Department of the Governor’s Office through the Office of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG).



The letter authorizing the purchase of the SUV was addressed to the SSG, Dr. Modupe Alade.

It was written by Mr. Bayo Opeyemi, the Executive Secretary/Director General, and was dated August 1.

The deal was alleged approved same day by Fayose with his signature on the document.

The memo reads: “Kindly refer to the request for the direct procurement of one unit of 2018 Lexus LX 570 (U.S Specs) as a parting gift for the governor by the Political and Economic Affairs Department of the Governor’s Office at Page 15.

“The invoice at page 18 has been reviewed by the state’s Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) from N68,000,000 (exclusive of tax) to N66,000,000. The inclusion of 13 per cent tax will bring the total cost to N75,862,068.96.

“Please, present for approval the direct procurement of one unit of 2018 Lexus LX (US Specs) as parting gift for the Governor a sum of N75,862,068.96.”

A Certificate of No Objection (CONO) for Contract Award for the procurement of the SUV was also issued by Ekiti State Bureau of Public Procurement, dated August 3.

A Certificate of Purchase (COP) was also issued.

A civil servant familiar with the deal said: “The question people should be asking is: why is the outgoing governor approving the parting gift for himself?

“It is strange in the system, unheard of; it is suspicious. It was supposed to be the decision of the government and not the decision of one man.

“It is not the outgoing governor that will determine what the state will give to him. There is more to it than meets the eye.



“The incoming government must get to the root of the matter and all those involved, whether civil servants or politicians, must be brought to book.”

Former Minister of State for Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, slammed Fayose for allegedly buying the SUV as a parting gift.

He criticised the payment of N43 million severance package to himself and deputy, Prof. Kolapo Olusola.

Adeyeye also criticised the governor for alleged sale of government property and auction of government vehicles to cronies at “ridiculous prices”.

The former minister, who declared his intent yesterday to run for Ekiti South senatorial, said the governor’s latest action showed that he (Fayose) did not love the workers and masses as he used to claim.

He added that it was callous of the governor to buy a luxury vehicle for himself with the state fund when workers are owed between five and eight months’ salary arrears.

Adeyeye urged the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership in the state to be more vigilant to prevent the state from being plundered by the outgoing administration.

He said: “I have always identified Fayose as a selfish person. He only thinks of himself. I have always maintained that the governor can’t be trusted.

“I know he will like to appropriate everything to himself. We learnt he has been selling state assets, like the Erunfun Land on Ijan road. That land was bought by Chief Obafemi Awolowo in 1949 and he never appropriated it.

“We have had many governments in Ekiti: former Governors Segun Oni and Kayode Fayemi never contemplated selling the land, but Fayose was planning to sell it to himself. Ekiti people won’t accept that.

“It was Fayemi who supposed to send him off, but due to selfishness, he (Fayose) decided to appropriate that to himself. That is not the trait of a good leader.

“For four years, Fayose didn’t do more than five projects and he claimed he has performed. He only touched two towns throughout the time. Schools, hospitals and roads have decayed under Fayose. No investments in Agriculture, road network, everything was neglected.

“Not even a single investment was witnessed in agriculture. So, that victory (last governorship poll) was a sound one for APC and Ekiti people.

“Fayose made several agreements with leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2014 to win the governorship election. He never fulfilled any. He manipulated everything to suit himself in the PDP, despite the fact that I nearly won the governorship primary before I decided to defect to APC, just to defeat him at all cost.”



Governor’s media aide: let accusers bring evidence

The Chief Press Secretary to Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, has debunked the alleged purchase of a N75 million Lexus “parting gift” to the governor from government coffers.

In a text message to our reporter last night, Adelusi challenged anyone with evidence of the purchase to present same.

The governor’s aide urged anyone with evidence that Fayose paid N43 million as severance package to himself and his deputy, Prof. Kolapo Olusola, to show it.

He described those criticising the purchase of the vehicle as “ignorant”.

Adelusi said: “Those who alleged should come forward with genuine evidence of purchase of the vehicle as well as payment of severance allowance.

“Those who are saying these things are ignorant of the law.”

After fasting for seven days, all ‘my 35 children’ scored A1 in mathematics — Prince Bola Ajibola

A former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Bola Ajibola (SAN), is celebrating the students of one of the educational establishments founded by him for their excellent performance at the latest edition of the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).

Ajibola, a retired Judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague, Kingdom of Netherlands, is thanking God for strengthening him to make the IMA International Model College happen. According to him, all the 35 students from the school who sat for the African standard examination scored A1 in mathematics.

The new development which, he said, is not new to the school, however, came with added excellence this year. The students’ achievement appears to be a further proof of Allah’s acceptance of the strides of the global figure who served as Minister for over six years without taking salary.

It will be recalled that the Crescent University Abeokuta (CUAB), which is the peak of the educational establishments founded by the Olori Omo Oba of Owu Kingdom, Abeokuta, is, today, one of the leading private universities in Nigeria. CUAB is also known as the ‘Citadel of moral and academic excellence’.

At a ceremony held in the premises of Islamic Mission for Africa (IMA), Abeokuta, the 84-year-old legal luminary gave details of how the latest academic success of ‘his children’ at the IMA International Model College gladdened his heart.

Ajibola said: “What I saw and heard on Thursday, July 26, 2018 concerning our outgoing students at IMA International Model College not only amazed me but also gave me the impression that these students are among the best all over Nigeria if not in Africa.

They performed wonders in their dedication and diligence in many ways. “Before the final examination (SSCE), they unanimously took a decision to fast for seven days which they completed with prayers. God Almighty answered their prayers because all the 35 students passed their SSCE. Besides, none of these students failed in mathematics”.

The founder went on, “In fact, they all got A1. The most incredible of this is that one them who sat for further mathematics also scored A1. They all did well in physics, biology and chemistry scoring credit. They performed wonders in cultural display and deep Islamic lectures. In science, they performed an experiment that really went beyond my imagination.

They were able to produce electricity and, in fact, light out of wired electrode and we noticed electrical light patently coming out of the wired lemon seeds which was about 20. “On culture, two of them came out to give a wonderful performance in EWI which was done to the acclamation of all the guests in the hall.

Before the program even started, one of them continued to recite from the holy Quran virtually endlessly. He had memorised virtually a large part of the holy Quran.

“One of the parents who showered gifts on the students testified that his daughter that attended IMA International Model College was given a scholarship and she is now doing excellently well at Crescent University”.

Opeyemi Jimoh, IMA college maths teacher, whose all 35 students scored A1, is a holder of bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and University of Ibadan. Jimoh is an unassuming egghead.



A winner of several awards, the teacher fell in love with the teaching of mathematics and further mathematics which many students dread like the plaque owing to their abstract and “problematic” nature. Jimoh (l) receiving his Best Teacher of the Year prize from the Coordinator, IMA Model College, Abeokuta, Nurudeen Oladimeji, while Ajibola (m) watches.

Management, stakeholders applaud The management and other stakeholders of IMA International Model College applauded the superlative performance of the outgoing students.

Apart from Ajibola, the Vice Chancellor, Crescent University, Professor Ibraheem Gbajabiamila, during his remarks at the award and prize-giving ceremony of the school, said the outgoing students were among the lucky ones to have had access to quality education provided by the school.

He noted that the success stories recorded by Crescent University today would have been impossible without the Islamic Mission for Africa (IMA) “the body which gave birth to this college and Crescent University, Abeokuta”. Gbajabiamila charged the outgoing and current students of the college to crown their excellence by joining Crescent University.

A statement by the management said, “The college had recorded 100% success twice in the SSCE in the past. However, the uniqueness of this year’s result is the near impossible feat of A1 parallel recorded by products of the school in mathematics.”

The erudite mathematics teacher, Jimoh, said, “Mathematics is not a difficult subject; it is the methodology of many teachers and delivery that pose problems.” He emphasized that the fear appeal by many mathematics teachers makes students dread the subject and causes victims to, later in their lives, have career switch from mathematics’ related subjects.

“A mathematics teacher should cultivate his or her students to be his friends,” Jimoh stated. On the secret behind his success, the teacher explained that he always ensured that “certain topics like statistics, trigonometry, quadratic graphs, trigonometric graphs, longitude and latitude which come out every year in SSCE were treated in details.”

“These topics need to be dealt with more seriously than the others”, he revealed. The teacher believes that since mathematics’ topics are usually linked, the knowledge of students in previous topics and previous year should be assessed by the teacher in charge who must go the “extra, extra mile” to tutor his students.

According to him, “the teacher must also be very patient in handling the subject while an effective teacher should go as far as explaining mathematics in the local language because the subject is abstract”. Jimoh went on, “Mathematics teachers should be lenient with their students while taking the subject. Some teachers make the subject harder than it seems.

“Mathematics deals with steps and that is what WAEC marks. You may even get the final answer wrong but still get like 9/10 in a particular question. So it has to go with steps. I have been involved in WAEC coordination. I know the rules and this has helped”.

He identified giving a lot of assignments and entertaining questions from students even beyond the regular periods of the subject as a good step to helping students, saying this is necessary because one or two periods of regular class may not be enough to groom students to the desired standard.

The teacher agreed, to a large extent, that most failure in the subject is attributable to psychological reason regarding teacher-student relationship.

There is no doubting the fact that Jimoh is a model of how an ideal mathematics teacher should be—proactive, patient, painstaking, friendly and methodical.

The world needs more of this genius to develop the fledgling minds.

Why it’s difficult to defeat Boko Haram— Col Abdulmumini Aminu

Says everbody’s now at war in North East
Commends Gov Shettima’s developmental strides

Colonel Abdulmumini Aminu (retired) was Military Governor of old Borno State between 1985 and 1987before the creation of Yobe State in 1991 by the administration of Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida. In this interview, Col Aminu took a cursory look at some of the changes he saw in the state he governed 30 years ago. He also tasked the citizenry on how to collaorate with the security agencies in order to bring Boko Haram to its knees saying terrorism was the most difficult war in any part of the world.

Excerpts:-

Sir, is this your first visit to Borno State since you left office?

As you know, I came to Borno purposely to attend the wedding Fatiha of the daughters of my friend and Elder statesman, Dr. Mohammed Indimi but it is not my first since leaving office. I come from time to time to visit friends here. I was here shortly after Governor Kashim Shettima came into power.

As a former governor, you must have known that Borno used to be a peaceful state in the Northeast; but the state is now in its ninth year of Boko Haram crisis, how would you describe the situation?

I left Borno state exactly 30 years ago now. It is also very interesting to tell you that I spent 30 months as Military Administrator in Borno state. Looking at the past and present, you know, so many things have taken place or happened. There is the issue of Boko Haram which has been a source of terror for both the people and the government but I am impressed with how the state governor has been handling the crisis, how he has stood for the people and how he has efficiently tabled the crisis before the international community.

I am also highly impressed with what is happening in terms of development put in place by the present administration of Governor Kashim Shettima. To put politics aside, I was humbled when I saw positive changes in Maiduguri and other parts of the state. What I have seen is unbelievable considering my knowledge that Borno receives less federal statutory allocations compared to other states in addition to the crisis that has forced millions people out of their homes and are now Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). I have seen secondary schools that are fully air-conditioned, digitally constructed classrooms with laptops, computers, ICT materials which have really enhanced the learning processes in the state. I have seen newly constructed network of roads and drainages within the metropolis, I have seen different housing estates like the Legacy Garden in Bulumkutu ward, Model Primary and Secondary schools in Gomari Airport, Hospitals, beautification and interlocking of the streets, in fact, the whole town I saw has changed. We must give credit to Governor Shettima who has done so much despite the security challenges in the state. I like his courage, I like his focus, I like his belief in the masses, I also love his tenacity of purpose, he is fantastic, and I must commend him and his people for giving their maximum support to achieve these. The developments are very glaring. By the way,


I have seen the transformations in Agriculture; I have seen quite a number of tractors, combined harvesters and other modern farming inputs provided by this government. If you go to Agric Farm Centre, you will be amazed with the kinds of agricultural equipment purchased and ready for distribution to our farmers in this cropping season. This is why I will advise the people of Borno State ahead of 2019 to be careful in their choice of Shettima’s successor. You can imagine if an incompetent person had been the governor of Borno in this kind of situation. Governor Shettima’s successor has to be someone who will consolidate on these good records and do more for the people of the state. Such person should be a good person who will have the interest of the people at heart just like Governor Shettima.

The people should ensure that they give their massive votes to a person with good character and integrity, a person with no questionable character and who will carry everybody along.

You sound as if you did not envisage such development happening within the last 30 years

How can anyone expect these kinds of good things under the security challenges in this State? I expected development no doubt but these positive changes took place very fast and despite the activities of insurgents, which the governor actually inherited from his predecessor.

This kind of development is what democracy is all about. It is government’s responsibility to provide an enabling environment to its people, it is also the responsibility of the people to take advantage of such provisions by government in the society. People need to play their own role in the society. If the leadership is playing its roles, and the followers do not play their roles well, there would be problem. Therefore, in moving any society to greater heights, it is a collective responsibility. Even if you give Borno State Government the entire 2018 Budget of this country, this budget will not be adequate given the demanding nature of our people, so I am appealing to our people to really understand governance. I want to advice that government needs to enlighten our people on the complexity of governance, so that they will understand.

As someone with military background, what do you think is the solution to the Boko Haram challenges facing the Borno you once governed?

Terrorism is the most difficult war in any part of the world. Just like Boko Haram, you do not know who is a member of Boko Haram and who is not. Boko Haram members can go and kill, cause destructions, come back to the society and mingle with people. It is very difficult to identify a terrorist, and that is why all hands must be on deck to end Boko Haram. Everywhere in the world, security is very expensive and when you are talking of security, as I keep on saying ‘security belongs to everybody, it is everyone’s business. Everybody has to play his/her own part. When Boko Haram thing started it was left in the hands of government and security agencies, and that was why it went viral. These operations going on here in the North East must be a collective responsibility.

Everybody must be adequately involved, whether you are a Muslim, a Christian or pagan, otherwise we will continue to have disconnect and there would be a problem that may consume all of us. We should all be informants to security forces. What I mean is that the citizenry should volunteer to give information to our security agencies, especially on the movement of criminals around their environment or within the theatre of war. Such information is normally treated with confidentiality. Let us wake up from our slumber, let us be more courageous for all of us to fight this menace of Boko Haram. I am not saying that you should do something which at the end of the day will get you killed, but there are things you should do before losing hope to your enemy. As a man there are certain things you should do to safeguard yourself and your family, and one of those things is courage. We are in a situation that everybody is at war now in the North East and we must have courage and support government and security agencies so that at the end we come victorious.

I am happy that this Boko Haram war is uniting us as a state and country, because when Boko Haram terrorists strike, they strike at everybody whether you are a Muslim or a Christian and that is why people have started teaming up to fight the war irrespective of religious inclinations, tribes or ethnic considerations. I must commend the Federal Government, the state governments in the North East and our security agencies as well as our people for taking the bull by the horn to see to the end of Boko Haram insurgency.