EFCC drags Ondo Speaker to court over alleged financial impropriety

The Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Mr Bamidele Oleyelogun, was, on Tuesday, arraigned before an Akure High Court sitting at Olokuta, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged financial impropriety.

The Speaker was arraigned alongside the Clerk of the house, Bode Adeyelu, the lawmaker representing Akoko South West I in the House, Felemu Bankole and two others staff.

However, the trial was stalled following the absence of the Counsel to the EFCC, Didanj Fredrick, who claimed that the commission did not get hearing notice until Monday evening.

The Speaker, Oloyelogun arrived at the court at about 8:30 am in a tinted Black Prado Jeep with a pilot vehicle and another gold Kia Jeep with number plate 95 ODHA, but the proceeding was stalled with the absence of the EFCC lawyer, Fredrick.

Meanwhile, journalists were barred from covering the court proceedings at the Court located inside the Correctional centre.

One of the prison officials led by the Squadron Commander, Mr Ibrahim Ayooola Ogunja, told newsmen that he was acting on an order from Abuja which placed all correctional centres on red alert to forestall jailbreak.

The Public Relations Officer of the correctional centre, Mr Ogundare Babatunde also explained that journalists would not be allowed into the correctional centre which houses the court.

It will be recalled that the embattled Deputy Speaker of the House, Iroju Ogundeji, alleged that the Speaker and some other principal officers of the House, collected and shared the sum of N2.4m earmarked for them to attend a seminar in Lagos in 2019.

Ogundeji in his petition to EFCC alleged that the lawmakers requested for funds to be released for four members of the Committee on Tertiary Education to attend the seminar organised on Wednesday 11 and Thursday, December 12, 2019, but failed to attend the seminar.

He, however, asked the agency to investigate how the fund collected by the Speaker was spent, saying the Speaker and other principal officers shared the money the phoney seminar in Lagos.

Ogundeji listed in the petition members of the House of Assembly pencilled down to attend the phoney seminar to include the former Clerk, the Deputy Speaker, the Chairman of the House Committee on Tertiary Education and two members of the committee.

The EFCC consequently, invited the Speaker for questioning over the allegation while the Clerk of the Assembly, Mr Bode Adeyelu, the lawmaker representing Akoko South West I in the House, Felemu Bankole and two others staff, Olusegun Kayode and O.J Afolabi were detained by EFCC.

Meanwhile, the screening of the Commissioner designates scheduled to hold at the Assembly complex has been rescheduled.

The exercise which commenced on Monday yesterday was suspended because the Chairman House Committee on Selection and the Speaker of the House, Rt Honourable Oleyelogun Bamidele David is indisposed.

The development may not be unconnected with the appearance of the Speaker of the House before the High Court in Olokuta.

In a statement by the Chairman House Committee on Information, Youth and Sports Development, Mr Olugbenga Omole, said the House regretted all inconveniences caused by the suspension.

The statement read: “We enjoined the remaining Commissioner nominees to report promptly on the rescheduled date with all necessary documents.

“Nine of the nominees were screened yesterday while the remaining five were earlier scheduled for appearance today.

“The exercise will continue tomorrow Wednesday, December 1, 2021, at 1 pm at the Conference Room of the Speaker.”

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EFCC drags Ondo Speaker to court over alleged financial impropriety