The attention of the Ekiti State Government has been drawn to a publication by SaharaReporters alleging irregularity in the award of a ₦578.595 million contract for the construction of an e-office and conference hall for the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Ado-Ekiti, to Doylit Resources Nigeria Limited, on the basis that the company is linked to a serving political appointee of the State Government.
The State Government considers it necessary to put the facts on record and correct the misleading impression created by the report.
THE ₦578.6 MILLION IS NOT A SECOND CONTRACT
The most important clarification is that the ₦578.6 million figure does not represent a second or duplicate contract award for the BPP e-office and conference hall, as the report appears to suggest.
According to the records of the Ekiti State Bureau of Public Procurement, the project was originally awarded to Doylit Resources Nigeria Limited at a contract sum of ₦443,459,756.25, following the prescribed procurement process.
During the execution of the project, certain additional works which were not captured in the original Bill of Quantities were identified as necessary for the proper completion of the project. The contractor initially proposed ₦140,010,300.50 for the additional works.
Following review by the Bureau, the cost of the additional works was reduced to ₦137,135,481.75, based on prevailing market prices.
The original contract sum of ₦443,459,756.25, together with the approved additional works of ₦137,135,481.75, therefore brings the total project value to approximately ₦578.6 million.
It is consequently incorrect to present the December 2025 award of approximately ₦443.46 million and the August 2026 figure of approximately ₦578.6 million as two separate contracts for the same project.
The latter figure represents the original contract sum plus the cost of additional works, subject to the requisite approval process.
The additional works are also yet to commence, pending approval by the State Executive Council, while the main construction has already reached an advanced stage, with the structural elements completed.
DUE PROCESS WAS FOLLOWED
The Bureau has further confirmed that the original procurement was conducted in accordance with the Ekiti State Public Procurement Re-enacted Law, 2020.
Three vendors — Kelvinkay Global Nigeria Limited, Dowab Nigeria Limited and Doylit Resources Nigeria Limited — were invited to submit quotations under the selective tendering method.
Following evaluation, Doylit Resources Nigeria Limited emerged with the most responsive bid of ₦443,459,756.25.
The recommendation was subsequently forwarded to the State Tenders Board and thereafter ratified by the State Executive Council, following which the official letter of award was issued.
These facts clearly demonstrate that the contract was not arbitrarily awarded, nor was the project value increased without a procurement process and appropriate government consideration.
ON THE ALLEGED LINK TO THE GOVERNOR’S AIDE
The report places significant emphasis on the fact that an individual who is a director of the company is also a serving Senior Special Assistant to the Governor.
The State Government reiterates that association with a serving political appointee, without evidence of prohibited conduct, does not by itself establish procurement fraud, conflict of interest or breach of procurement law.
What is material is whether the procurement process complied with the law, whether the company satisfied the requirements of the tender and whether the award was subjected to the prescribed evaluation and approval procedures.
In this instance, the Bureau of Public Procurement has confirmed that three vendors were invited to participate, the bids were evaluated, Doylit Resources Nigeria Limited emerged with the most responsive bid, and the award proceeded through the State Tenders Board and State Executive Council.
The company was incorporated in August 2022, before the appointment of the individual referenced in the report as a Senior Special Assistant in December 2023. The chronology therefore does not support any suggestion that the company was created for the purpose of securing contracts from the present administration.
The Government nevertheless remains committed to the observance of all applicable conflict-of-interest, disclosure and procurement safeguards.
ON NEWLY REGISTERED COMPANIESThe attempt to portray the age of a company as evidence of procurement impropriety is equally misplaced.
A company’s eligibility to participate in public procurement is determined by the requirements of the particular procurement exercise and the applicable law, not merely by the number of years since its incorporation.
Where a company satisfies the stipulated technical, financial, personnel, equipment, experience or other requirements applicable to a procurement process, its relatively recent incorporation does not automatically disqualify it.
Accordingly, the fact that a company is relatively young does not constitute evidence that a contract awarded to it was improper.
ON THE BROADER CLAIMS OF PROCUREMENT IRREGULARITY
The Government has also taken note of the attempt to link the present matter with earlier reports concerning other companies and with entries on the State’s Open Contracting Portal.
The Government welcomes scrutiny of its procurement activities and recognises the legitimate role of the media in examining public expenditure.
However, public procurement records should be interpreted in their proper context. An entry on an open contracting portal, without the accompanying procurement documents and administrative context, may not tell the complete story of a transaction.
For instance, the present case demonstrates why it is important to examine the underlying procurement records before drawing conclusions: the ₦443.46 million original award and the ₦578.6 million project value are not two separate awards, but the original contract sum and the subsequently reviewed cost of additional works.
Similarly, the earlier references to transactions in which entities were allegedly listed as “Permanent Secretaries” on the portal should not automatically be interpreted as evidence that individual Permanent Secretaries personally received or executed contracts. Such entries require proper examination of the underlying procurement records and the identity of the actual contracting parties.
On SaharaReporters’ Pattern of Reporting
The Ekiti State Government is concerned by what appears to be a recurring pattern in some SaharaReporters publications concerning the State, in which procurement records are presented alongside speculative conclusions in a manner capable of creating an impression of wrongdoing before the relevant facts are fully established.
The Government welcomes scrutiny of its activities and recognises the important role of the media in holding public institutions accountable. However, scrutiny must be accompanied by fairness, verification and responsible interpretation of available records.
The publication itself acknowledges that the available records do not establish whether the latest BPP contract represents a continuation, variation, re-award or separate procurement process. Yet it proceeds to frame the transaction principally around alleged conflict of interest and procurement concerns.
That approach risks turning questions requiring verification into allegations presented to the public as established wrongdoing.
The same concern applies to the earlier report concerning contracts awarded to Conjunsta Nigeria Limited. The incorporation date of a company and the dates on which contracts were awarded may legitimately invite questions, but those dates, without more, do not establish that procurement laws were breached or that the company lacked the capacity to execute the contracts.
GOVERNMENT’S COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY
The administration of Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji remains firmly committed to transparency, accountability, due process and value for money in the management of public resources.
The State has deliberately embraced open contracting and public disclosure of procurement information to facilitate scrutiny by citizens, the media and other stakeholders.
Indeed, Ekiti State has received several national recognitions, awards and commendations for its commitment to transparency, accountability, fiscal responsibility and good governance. These include recognition by reputable civil society and governance-monitoring organisations such as BudgIT Foundation, the Paradigm Leadership Support Initiative (PLSI) and the Guild of Online Media Editors and Publishers (GOMEP) Nigeria through its Governance Accountability and Transparency Index (GATI), among others.
These recognitions, secured through independent assessments of different aspects of the State’s governance and public financial management, underscore the administration’s commitment to openness, institutional accountability and responsible management of public resources.
Government therefore has no objection to legitimate questions concerning public expenditure. What it objects to is the presentation of questions, assumptions or incomplete interpretations as established evidence of corruption or procurement wrongdoing.
The Government encourages SaharaReporters and other media organisations to seek clarification from the appropriate authorities where procurement records require further explanation before publishing conclusions capable of misleading the public.
The State remains open to constructive scrutiny and will continue to provide relevant information through the appropriate channels. If SaharaReporters or any other individual or organisation possesses credible evidence that the procurement process was manipulated, that the contractor did not satisfy the applicable requirements, or that any official improperly influenced the award, such evidence should be made available to the appropriate statutory authorities for investigation.
The Ekiti State Government will cooperate with any lawful and properly constituted investigation into its procurement activities.
The Government remains focused on delivering quality infrastructure and public services to the people of Ekiti State and will continue to uphold the principles of due process, transparency, accountability and responsible public financial management.
Signed,
Rt. Hon. Taiwo Olatunbosun
Commissioner for Information
Ekiti State
8th September, 2026
Last modified: September 8, 2026