Peter Ayoade, Ibadan
The newly appointed Governing Council chairman of The Ibarapa Polytechnic, Eruwa, renamed Adeseun Ogundoyin Polytechnic, Dr. Samuel Ogundiran has disclosed that he has never for once arrested by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), contrary to a fake media report of his alleged arrest by the anti-graft angency for financial misappropriation, describing the news as untrue.
While reacting to a media report of his alleged involvement in financial misappropriation, Ogundiran said that the present administration in Oyo State has set up visitation panel to look into the allegation of misappropriation of funds and other issues that caused crises in the school, noting that the panel report was submitted to the government and the white paper of that report has been released, where none of the Council members including himself was indicted in the white paper.
The Governing Council chairman, who is an Associate Professor of Educational Administration & Planning pointed accusing finger to the suspended management of the institution led by the former rector, Rasheed Eyitayo as being behind the fake news, saying that all what the suspended management are trying to do was just a mere blackmail and propaganda to dent his image.
“As a result of the misappropriation of the suspended management, they wanted to use EFCC to stop a meeting that was held on 28th of May, 2019 so that the meeting would not hold because they knew that if the meeting was held, they might be affected by the decision of the council.
“We got to EFCC office in Ibadan late on that day and we were later released on personal recognition, so would I be released on personal recognition if there is indeed a case of misappropriation? Since then, this case has never come up, the Police Area Command in Eruwa was even aware of the whole scenario.” He said.
The submission of the Governing Council’s chairman tally with sources from the institution union executive members together with the elders of the host community of the institutions.
The secretary, Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the six state owned tertiary institutions, Mr. Akin Adekanbi noted that the date on the fake story was the last date of the last management which has been suspended, saying that the writer of the fake report should have done their investigation very well before embarking on it, adding that the writer should have confirmed from the EFCC Ibadan, the Police Area Command in Eruwa and IBR, 92.5fm, Ibadan.
There was a lot of crisis in the institution during the tenure of Eyitayo led administration, and it got to a stage the the Governing Council set up a committee to investigate the cases and the last day desicion was about to make on the committee report that the EFCC visited the campus, the union in the campus insisted that the meeting must hold, and after the meeting, the Governig Council chairman and its members, the management and all the three union in the school went to EFCC office
“We got to EFCC office at Iyaganku late, and their boss was not around and they were later released on personal recognition because evidence worked against the suspended management, there are management outside which the government has suspended and their names has been removed from the payrole of the institution, so in one way or the other, they will be aggrieved.
“Alot of investigation and search has been done on the appointee before government eventually appointed them, so if anybody at this time is trying to blackmail or go against the desicion of the government, posterity will judge such person. We held a JAC meeting today and nobody resisted the appointment.
“The government has really done well, Makinde is a peace loving governor and he wants peace across the state. The education sector is one of the sensitive areas because once there is a good council, there will also be a good management.
The chairman, Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnic, Ibarapa Polytechnic branch, Mr Titiloye Joseph described the trending fake news against the governing council chairman as the work of blackmailer who wanted to tarnished the image of the chairman because of his re-emergence as the governing council chairman of the institution.
A source through the phone conversation within EFCC Ibadan office who pleaded anonimity because he was not authorized to speak with the press said that the antigraft agency only invited, not arrested the Governing Council chairman, adding that the case was not a serious issue because the EFCC would have taken it up by then if it was a very serious issue.
Recalled that Governor Makinde constituted the Chairmen and Board members for the six state-owned tertiary institutions which includes The Polytechnic Ibadan, Oke Ogun Polytechnic, Adeseun Ogundoyin Polytechnic, Eruwa, Emmanuel Alayande College of Education, Oyo among others.
