MINISTER TACKLES FAYEMI OVER LOCATION OF FEDERAL VARSITY

 The Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory, Navy Capt. Caleb Olubolade (retd), has opposed the siting of the proposed federal university in Ikole Local Government Area of the state.

Olubolade stated his opposition at a press conference in Ijero-Ekiti on Tuesday. He said that Fayemi was wrong to have taken the Federal Government team, which visited the state recently, to a site in Ikole.

The minister said, “The choice of Ikole-Ekiti as the site of the Federal University coming to the state is not final. The Federal Government, which is the owner of the university, will decide where to site the university. Where to site it will be discussed at the Federal Executive Council meeting and the FG has the final say.

“It is not a state government’s project so the governor cannot say where the varsity will be. The FG will fund the project. What is needed from the governor is the certificate of occupancy.

What we need from the governor is land, he only has to give certificate of occupancy.

“The delegation sent to the state ought to have been taken to two or more sites and come up with its recommendation.”

But the governor has said that he didn’t do anything wrong by siting the varsity in Ikole.

Fayemi. who spoke through his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Mr. Mojeed Jamiu, said that the governor announced the site of the university in the presence of the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Kenneth Gbagi, and officials of the National Universities Commission. The team had about three weeks ago visited Ikole-Ekiti.

He said, “ The governor is right in siting the university in Ikole. Although the governor is from the district but he did not use his power to site the varsity in Ijan-Ekiti his home town.

“Governor Fayemi approved the siting of the university in Ikole to correct the imbalance in the distribution of tertiary institutions in the state.”

The governor warned against using the university to create enmity among the people of the state.