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By Ahmed Yousuf
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured a court order to detain the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sujimoto Luxury Construction Limited, Sijibomi Ogundele, over alleged N5.7billion unexecuted contract.
Ogundele is facing investigation following his alleged failure to deliver 22 Smart Green School projects in Enugu State after his company was reportedly paid by the state government.
He was accused of abandoning the project, failing to return to site, and ignoring repeated calls for accountability.
Following his alleged failure to honour several invitations, the EFCC, on September 5, declared him wanted.
However, before he surrendered himself to the anti-graft agency, the embattled contractor took to his social media platforms to plead his innocence.
He explained that the contract was underpriced, and equally cited inflation as a major factor that contributed to his inability to execute the project.
Responding to the claim, the Enugu State Government alleged that the Sujimoto CEO disappeared after he collected N5.7bn as 50 percent mobilization fee to deliver the 22 Smart Green Schools in six months, being February 2025.
“The Enugu State Government paid the sum of N5,762,565,475.25, representing 50 per cent of the contract sum, in order to fast-track the projects at all the sites.
“Rather than play to the rules of the contract, Mr. Ogundele resorted to shoddy jobs and the use of inexperienced workers and quack engineers.
“None of the little jobs done on his sites met the structural integrity of the projects as specified in the structural drawing.
“Worse still, he vanished into thin air with the money. All efforts made by the government to get him to a roundtable to discuss the quality and progress of work proved abortive.
“He equally refused to attend the periodic projects briefing organised by the state government for all contractors or take numerous calls and messages put across to him.
“In fact, he practically abandoned the sites, leaving the Enugu State Government with no other choice but to petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to recover the funds paid to him.
“A joint team of officers of the Enugu State Ministry of Works and Infrastructure and the EFCC visited the 22 sites to evaluate the progress of work on May 8 and 9, 2025, where it was clearly established that there had been minimal to no significant work done at the said sites one year after the contract award.
“In some cases, he fraudulently did not do excavation for all the blocks in site. It is also on record that he has not shown up at the sites or made himself available to either the state government or the law enforcement agencies.
“The government has since retaken and handed over the sites to new firms, which had no choice but to start the construction afresh. It is equally noteworthy that there were other firms awarded multiple number of Smart Green School projects and they are delivering quality jobs on target,” the state added.
Pictures that accompanied the Enugu State Government’s response showed that the project sites were mostly at the levels of foundation and DPC, with a few at the stage of block work.
Meanwhile, EFCC, which earlier froze Ogundele’s company account, secured an order from an Abuja Chief Magistrate Court to retain him in custody pending the conclusion of the investigation.
“We have made enormous progress in the investigation. From next week, he (Ogundele) will interface with top officials of the Enugu State Government.
“He is expected to explain how he spent the N5.7bn or refund the money. His case looks straightforward,” a source at the EFCC told Vanguard, adding that the account was frozen to ensure that funds in it were not dissipated should there be need for a refund or forfeiture.
