The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibadan Zonal Office, allegedly summoned some Ogun State government officials for questioning on Tuesday as part of an ongoing investigation.
Dele Oyewale, the Head of Media and Publicity of the EFCC, verified the information on Wednesday. ‘’I just called our Ibadan zonal office and it was confirmed that some officials of the state government were invited for a chat in respect of an ongoing investigation and they have since gone back to their state. Nobody was also detained,” Oyewale said.
Oyewale was asked to verify if those invited were Ogun State officials, He said, “I can only tell you that they are officials of the Ogun State government and it was in connection with an ongoing investigation. It’s not more than that.”
But when contacted, ,Kayode Akinmade, Governor Dapo Abiodun’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity said, “I am currently out of town, so I am not aware of what you are talking about but in any case, anyone can write petition but that doesn’t mean that what you have written is the truth. The EFCC can also invite anyone but that doesn’t mean such a person has been indicted.”
Although information gathered from a reputable source mentioned that five officials of the government were questioned. Their invitation was said to be on the strength of a petition written by Wale Adedayo, the former Chairman of the Ijebu East Local Government Area.
Adedayo had last year August accused Governor Dapo Abiodun of diverting about N10.8bn meant for the 20 local governments in the state. On condition of anonymity for fear of being victimised, a top government official said, “It is true that some officials of the state government were invited by the EFCC on Tuesday. I learnt it was about the finance of the state government but I don’t know which of them”.
Ex-LG chairman, Adedayo, had written what was supposed to be a private letter to a former governor of the state, Chief Olusegun Osoba, last year August, accusing Governor Abiodun of diverting about N10.8bn meant for the development of the council areas. The letter, however, found its way into the media becoming a matter of public discourse.
Adedayo had also forwarded a petition to the EFCC calling for an investigation of the state government for the alleged financial infraction.
The state government denied the accusation, stating that it had supplemented the monthly federal funds distributed to local governments. They argued that without this additional support, many local governments would have struggled to meet their financial commitments, such as paying salaries among other commitments.
Following his allegations against the state government, Adedayo was removed from office through impeachment. He is currently facing charges of false accusations and character defamation against Governor Abiodun in an Abeokuta Magistrate court.
This article was written by Tamaraebiju Jide, a student at Elizade University
