Kayode Fayemi had a very impressive screening at the ministerial screening today in Abuja.The ex Ekiti government was eloquent and knowledgeable and answered all question thrown at him with ease.The most anticipated question for him probably was asked by Senate Whip Adeyeye.He asked Fayemi, 'You
left heavy financial burden on Ekiti and spent unspecified amount of money of govt house'.
left heavy financial burden on Ekiti and spent unspecified amount of money of govt house'.
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| Kayode Fayemi at Ministerial nominees screening |
Answering the question on the debt, Fayemi said, 'About the debt in Ekiti, i'll like to say governance is a continuum, I met obligations in excess of 30BN . 'Road network in Ekiti and other infrastructures significantly improved while I was Governor'
'Ekiti State couldn't have done better as it has done now. I did not borrow to pay Salaries, I borrowed for Capital Projects'.
'Ekiti never had a Govt House, anyone who had a chance to visit knew I was in a 2-bedroom apartment where I couldn't hold a meeting.Ekiti Govt House is the cheapest in Nigeria. I did not buy a N50m bed, I spent only N2.5bn on the Govt House.I challenge anyone to bring an invoice showing i bought a bed for N50m,there is not even a N1.5m bed in Ekiti government house '
Fayemi also explained that Ekiti was not a second class state and had to have a state house the people of the state can be proud of,stating that he had been to places like Kaduna and Akwa Ibom state and seen what they presented as their state houses.Concluding he said...
''I did it for Ekiti State & not for myself''.
On the final say as per the deby he commented,'Every state borrows, even the United State we look up to is the most indebted country in the world '
On education Senator Uba asked the ex governor, 'How would you rescue the education sector and where do you think Nigeria belongs as regards foreign policy'.
Fayemi responds to Senator Uba's concern on the Educational Sector. Saying, 'We have not been able to do well in the Technical and Vocational part of our Educational Sector'.
'We have a problem of enrolment. We need to do something about our Curriculum and Teacher Quality'
'We need to do something about our educational quality and quality of our teachers. We need to make our Public Schools attractive and all this boils down to enrolment''.
Fayyemi also had something to say on Foreign policy, Fayemi tells the Senate, 'On Foreign Policy; right now our domestic agenda does not really drive our Foreign Policy. Buhari is doing a lot on Foreign Policy, recognising that our neighbours are our first call of interest'.
'We must balance our interest between the West and the BRICS Countries'.
'Alternation of Power is the best way to deepen democracy; Not perpetuation of Power'.
''Poverty is not inevitable, we have a lot of countries like China that has lifted it's people from poverty. Poverty is the problem between the mindlessly rich and hopelessly poor'.
One of the senators on a lighter note asked Fayemi how he managed to smuggle himself out of the country during the Abacha period while he was running the Radio Kudirat which he had founded.