Documents show LASU lied about Okebukola’s age falsification scandal

The management of the Lagos State University (LASU) lied when it claimed that an investigative report exposing age falsification by a professor was incorrect, documents show.

The LASU management, while reacting to a PREMIUM TIMES investigation that revealed that one of the university’s professors, Peter Okebukola, falsified his age to remain in the service of the university longer than he was allowed by law, released a statement claiming that the story was incorrect.

Our investigation had revealed that Mr Okebukola, a former executive secretary of the National University Commission, used three different birth dates at different times during his 35-year academic career.

At different times, Mr Okebukola gave his birth dates as February 17, 1948, February 17, 1949, and February 17, 1951.

Documents Including multiple memos from the university Academic Staff Establishment division, three different curriculum vitae presented at various times by Mr Okebukola and letter written by Mr Okebukola withdrawing an earlier notice of resignation obtained by this newspaper implicated the university’s vice chancellor, Olanrewaju Fagbohun, a protégé of Mr Okebukola, in the age falsification scandal.

Our investigations revealed that the vice-chancellor, by withholding the personal file of Mr Okebukola, prevented the university’s Academic Staff Establishment division from taking steps that would have ensured that the former NUC boss was retired in 2016.

Our investigation further showed that the original date of birth presented by Mr Okebukola when he was employed by the university in 1984 was February 17, 1949, which would have made him eligible for compulsory retirement on age grounds in 2014.

But in the statement signed by the spokesperson of the LASU, Ademola Adekoya, the university claimed that it relied on the date of birth forwarded to it by Mr Okebukola’s former employer, Oyo State College of Education, when he was employed by the university.

“Professor Peter Okebukola joined the service of Lagos State University transferring his service from the then Oyo State College of Education, Ilesa and the date of birth on his Record of Service forwarded to the University by his former employer is 17th February, 1951. The University is bound to stand by that date because the Record of Service is the officially recognized record of his past service.

“The affirmation of the Date of Birth of Professor Okebukola in the Record of Service forwarded to the University by the Oyo State College of Education, Ilesa confirmed the assertion by Professor Okebukola that he was born on 17th February,1951,” the management of the university stated.

Below are official documents from the university showing the school management was aware of Mr Okebukola’s multiple birth dates. The documents also show that the university vice-chancellor, Olanrewaju Fagbohun, was not only aware of calls by the university’s Academic Staff Establishment division for Mr Okebukola to retire having past his statutory retirement age but also actively prevented the division from ordering Mr Okebukola to retire.