EFCC seals several properties in Ado-Ekiti amid suspicion that they belong to Fayose

ECONOMIC and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officials have seized several building including a hotel belonging to former Ekiti State governor Ayo Fayose in Ekiti State as part of their ongoing investigations into his tenure while in office.

Governor Fayose had submitted himself to the EFCC following the end of his tenure and the lapsing of his immunity from prosecution. Turning up at the commission's offices in Abuja wearing a T-shirt with the inscription EFCC I'm Here, Governor Fayose said he is ready to answer any questions about his stewardship.

Since his detention, Governor Fayose has denied any involvement in the $1.3bn scam in which former defence minister Senator Musiliu Obanikoro handed him cash to prosecute the 2014 Ekiti gubernatorial elections. In addition to the $1.3bn scam, Governor Fayose is also being probed for allegedly receiving kickbacks from government contractors through his aide, Abiodun Agbele, who is currently standing trial for fraud.

Yesterday, EFCC officials arrived in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital to seal some buildings linked to the former governor. Some of the sealed properties include a hotel and event centre at Fajuyi, two houses in the Government Reservation Area (GRA), the People’s 104.1 FM radio station and a two-storey building in Okesa.

Also seized are a high rise building located opposite Local Government Service Commission on Iyin Road and a petrol station under construction at Odo Otu, in the Atikankan area of the metropolis. EFCC officials, wearing their red jackets, were seen at about 10.35am yesterday, placing sealing orders on the properties that read: “Order from EFCC: This structure is under investigation. Keep Off."

Earlier this month, the Ekiti State Ministry of Urban and Physical Planning sealed two houses traced to Governor Fayose within GRA Ado-Ekiti.  Apparently both properties were said to have been built without the obtaining of the necessary approval plans.

Yesterday’s EFCC operation came just days after members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Society staged a public protest against the former governor, accusing him of illegally acquiring a parcel of land belonging to them to build a filling station for his son. However, Governor Fayose has accused the EFCC of sealing houses belonging to innocent people under the guise that the buildings were linked to him.

Governor Fayose's said: “I have just been informed that operatives of the EFCC in collaboration with the APC government in Ekiti are going about sealing houses of innocent people in the state, under the guise that the houses are linked to me. This is another wild goose chase and the usual media campaign against my person.

“It is only in our country that an anti-corruption agency will first go about sealing houses before determining the ownership, which can be done so easily by visiting relevant agencies. I am therefore informing the public ahead of their usual blackmail and media trial that none of the properties in question is owned by me and the records are there for anyone that is interested to see.

“The EFCC is advised to stop going about looking for ways to malign my person just because of their hatred as a result of my uncompromising stand on national issues. Even if the commission is being pressured from above to persecute Fayose at all costs, it should, at least, do its job diligently to save itself from persistent embarrassment.”