By Wole Adedeji, Ilorin
The immediate past Commissioner for Works and Transport in Kwara State, Engineer Rotimi Iliasu, has debunked news making the rounds that he was invited and detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Iliasu, clarified this while addressing journalists in Ilorin, the state capital, expressing shock that such damaging and unfounded rumour could be peddled about him, quoting an online publication, not CompassNG, during the week.
He informed that he had never been invited nor detained, neither while in office nor now, that he is out of office by the anti-graft agency for any unholy reason.
He said rather, he remembered that while in office as commissioner and an engineer for that matter, tbe EFCC requested the assistance of his ministry to help assess projects it was investgating for proper evaluations.
Iliasu said that interestingly, such projects were never that of the state government, pointing out that instead, they were other people’s projects, citing a University of Ilorin job allegedly done by a contractor, who was being investigated by the EFCC.
The former commissioner added that in order to give his ministry the prestige and honour the anti-graft agency accorded it, he opted to lead the team of engineers that carried out the assignment for the EFCC and came out highly commended.
Speaking on his stint as commissioner, Engineer Iliasu said that as a professional, he collaborated with his principal, Governor AbdulRazaq AbdulRahman, to execute capital projects at the cheapest rates, compared with other states and the immediate past administration in Kwara, but even with that, the projects all passed quality tests.
He said, “I have never been invited or detained by the EFCC. I thank God for the state and governor I served, the governor is very prudent and diligent in awarding contracts.”
He however expressed the views that certain people who undoubtedly could be politicians would be behind the sponsored rumour saying, “It’s all political, seems some people feel threatened by my popularity in Moro; my local government and the senatorial district. They could be trying to look for a way to tarnish my good image.
“But, to me, I feel it should not be all about pulling-him-down stuff. Before now, I’ve resolved within myself that I will not be a disappointment to my people, especially my generation; the youth.
“All I want to do is to help my people in Moro Local Government, which will be one of the greatest beneficiaries of this administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq in the last four years, I only want to give back to my people what is best for them.”
Speaking on the on going Tanke Fly-over bridge that started while he was in office, which was one of the reference subjects by his critics, Enginner Iliasu said, “The quality is superb, verified and certified by all the appropriate professional bodies like Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, COREN.
“The surface in some part of the bridge may look rough, but no sincere person can doubt the quality of the work, taking into cognizance, the kind of materials used.”
Speaking as an engineer on the occassional building collapses in the country, he advised people intending to buy land to build houses to always make sure that they buy lands in the upstream areas, which according to him, would save them possible disasters ocassioned by collapses or their structures being submerged by water in times of heavy rains.
Meanwhile, even when the new cabinet members had been appointed and assigned portfolios, none is appointed for the Ministry of Works and Transport yet.
