Oyebanji promises to support indigenous contractors

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Oyebanji promises to support indigenous contractors

The Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has unveiled plans by his administration to set up a Bureau of Local Content and Citizenship to ensure the patronage of more local contractors and workers.

Oyebanji said the proposed bureau would be a determined attempt to empower competent Ekiti contractors, prevent capital flight and ensure that Ekiti resources were channeled into the local economy.

The governor disclosed this in Ado Ekiti on Friday during the inauguration of the N384m chamber of Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers, “fitted with quality furniture and electronic devices to make meetings easy.”

According to the governor, the facility is capable of sitting 145 monarchs at a time.

Oyebanji praised the State Bureau of Special Projects for taking over the construction of the monarchs’ chamber after the contractor who started the project failed to return to the site because of the government’s rejection of the unacceptable variation that he presented after the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The vision of this government is to ensure that we keep our resources within our state. There shall be no capital flight; the job opportunities platform will be reserved for the Ekiti people. If you don’t have an Ekiti person that is based in Ekiti here, there must be an Ekiti person outside the state that can do that job.

“Very soon, we are going to put in place a Bureau of Local Content and Citizenship to ensure that contractors in the state adhere to this policy. With that, any contractor that is not ready to engage Ekiti citizens that are capable on their sites is not ready to do jobs here,” the governor said.

The Chairman of the Ekiti State Traditional Council, Oba Gabriel Adejuwon, expressed joy at the completion and delivery of the magnificent edifice, describing it as a dream come true.

Oba Adejuwon, who is the Onisan of Isan Ekiti, said monarchs in the state had long desired the project because the old chamber had become too small and inconvenient for them following the upgrade and installation of more members of the council.