‘Sujimoto CEO used inexperienced workers, quack engineers, abandoned project’ – Enugu govt

Sujimoto

The Enugu State Government has accused the Chief Executive Officer of Sujimoto Luxury Construction Limited, Olasijibomi Ogundele, of defrauding the state of nearly ₦6 billion meant for the construction of 22 Smart Green Schools.

In a statement issued on Friday by the Commissioner for Information and Communication, Dr. Malachy Agbo, the government alleged that Ogundele abandoned the projects after receiving 50 percent of the contract sum and failed to deliver quality work at the sites.

According to the government, on July 2, 2024, Sujimoto was awarded a contract worth ₦11.45 billion for the construction of 22 Smart Schools with a six-month completion timeline. The state said it released ₦5.76 billion—representing 50 percent of the total contract sum—to fast-track the projects.

“Rather than play to the rules of the contract to deliver quality projects for furnishing and equipping ahead of September 2025 school resumption, Mr. Ogundele resorted to shoddy jobs and the use of inexperienced workers and quack engineers. None of 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,” the statement read.

The government added that repeated efforts to reach Ogundele failed, leading to a petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). A joint inspection by EFCC operatives and state officials in May 2025 reportedly revealed minimal progress, with many sites left at foundation level.

Agbo further alleged that while Ogundele presented a Jaiz Bank bond to secure the contract, he received payments through Sujimoto’s another bank account, thereby preventing the government from holding Jaiz Bank accountable. He described this as “a premeditated intent to defraud the state.”

The government has since reassigned the projects to new contractors and pledged that the schools will be delivered by September 2025. “Nigerians should therefore disregard his theatrics and crocodile tears. Enugu State Government will surely recover every penny of Ndi Enugu fraudulently obtained by Mr. Olasijibomi Ogundele,” the statement concluded.