Expdonaloaded News; Airport project, Fayose’s ploy to siphon funds -Ex-Speaker, Bamisile

FORMER Speaker of Ekiti State House of As­sembly, Femi Bamisile has described the multi-billion naira Airport proj­ect undertaken by the ad­ministration of Governor Ayodele Fayose as a con­duit- pipe through which the governor allegedly intends to loot the treasury of the state.

Dismissing the project as a misplaced priority, Bamisile, an All Progres­sives Congress (APC) chieftain and governorship aspirant, queried the ratio­nale behind the building of a N17 billion airport in an economically disadvan­taged state like Ekiti.
He told newsmen in Ado Ekiti at the weekend that he was not planning a return to the Peoples Dem­ocratic Party (PDP).
“I view this airport project as an attempt to loot our funds. Why can’t Fayose take N1.6 billion out of the N17 billion to be wasted on this project, to construct Ado-Ikere-Iju road?
What economic ad­vantage has the airport in Akure on Ondo State? It is even under-utilised.
“Some of the tourist attractions like Ikogosi Warm Spring and Ipole Water Fall that can attract tourists to Ekiti are no lon­ger functional.”
Bamisile said the mere fact that Fayose’s govern­ment inaugurated the proj­ect without following “due process” vividly depicted that it was programmed to fail.
However, in a swift re­action, Fayose’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Id­owu Adelusi said the proj­ect was meant to boost the economy and integrity of the state.
“This is a project that could not be executed by Fayemi because that re­gime did not believe in the well-being and economic progress of Ekiti State.
“I am calling on Ekiti people to disregard what the APC people have said,” the CPS stated. He recalled that when Fay­ose wanted to dualise Ado Ekiti township roads during his first tenure, the same APC members, who were then in Alliance for Democracy(AD) criti­cized the project.
Adelusi noted that “ev­erybody is proud of what Fayose did by daulising Ado Ekiti township roads. Fayose has been scoring first in developing Ekiti. Not only will the airport be built. Fayose will build the first flyover in Ekiti and also an ultra-modern market to replace the Oja- Oba Market.”
In a related develop­ment, Commissioner for Works, Mr. Kayode Oso, who supervised the clear­ing of the 4,000-hectares airport site on Friday said the governor had set up a planning committee for the project, a month ago, adding that the committee consulted widely.