Jonathan Promises Ekiti Airport, Federal Secretariat

PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN (3RD R), CUTTING THE TAPE TO INAUGURATE THE GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING BUILDING OF ABUAD ON SATURDAY . WITH HIM ARE: FOUNDER OF THE UNIVERSITY, AARE AFE  BABALOLA (4TH L) HIS WIFE MODUPE (2ND R); GOV. KAYODE FAYEMI OF EKITI (2ND L) AND OTHER DIGNITARIES. (NAN)
PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN (3RD R), CUTTING THE TAPE TO INAUGURATE THE GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING BUILDING OF ABUAD ON SATURDAY . WITH HIM ARE: FOUNDER OF THE UNIVERSITY, AARE AFE BABALOLA (4TH L) HIS WIFE MODUPE (2ND R); GOV. KAYODE FAYEMI OF EKITI (2ND L) AND OTHER DIGNITARIES. (NAN)

President Goodluck Jonathan, on Saturday, said that the Federal Government would construct an airport and a secretariat inĀ Ekiti.

The President made the remark in Ado-Ekiti while reacting to the request by Gov. Kayode Fayemi during his one-day visit to the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Fayemi, had in an address of welcome, decried the non-existence of the facilities in the state.

According to him, Ekiti is the only state among the six createdĀ in 1996 that is yet to have a Federal Secretariat.

Fayemi also complained thatĀ the non take-off of theĀ airport project promised by theĀ federal government was slowing down the pace of economic activities in the state.

He urged theĀ President to facilitate the refund of the money spent by the stateĀ government on the construction and rehabilitation of some federal roads in the state.

According to him, out of theĀ N12 billion spent by the state government toĀ reconstructĀ 98.4 kilometres of federal roadsĀ only N2 billion has been refunded.

The governor commended Chief Afe Babalola, founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, for contributing toĀ the ongoing reform of the education sector.

President Jonathan, who said he was in the state to commission projects at the university, describedĀ Babalolaā€™s vision for the education sector as ā€œnoble.ā€

He also described him asĀ ā€œa man of unassailable character and epitome of knowledgeā€.

Earlier in his address,Ā Babalola said he ventured into the project to ensure the provision of qualitative education to Nigerians.

He said funding the education sector should not be the responsibility of government alone and called on wealthy Nigerians to also invest.

Babalola disclosed that he had, so far, committed aboutĀ N60 billion into the universityĀ project since its establishment aboutĀ four years ago.

Dignitaries at the occasion included theĀ Governors of Ondo, Gombe andĀ Kaduna States, as well as ministers and traditional rulers, among others. (NAN)