Alleged Corruption: Sacked lecturer demands status of ICPC investigation

A former lecturer at the University of Ibadan, Chukwuemeka Diji, has issued a 21-day ultimatum to the ICPC demanding the status of its investigation into the ‘corrupt practices’ in a department of the school.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the financial transactions of a conference meant for the department of mechanical engineering, were allegedly done without transparency.

Amongst those accused of involvement are two professors, Miracle Oyewola and Dare Ademola, who headed the department from 2011- 2012 and 2012-2016 respectively.

Backstory

In 2018, Mr Diji, who succeeded Mr Ademola, wrote the ICPC demanding an investigation into the ‘corrupt practices’ in the department.

He asked the commission to compel the university to probe the organisation of the Energy, Technology and Management (ETM) conference and its account since 2012- 2016.

PREMIUM TIMES’ correspondent gathered then through an official of Guarantee Trust Bank that the account existed between 2012 and 2017, even after the introduction of the Treasury Single Account policy.

The TSA policy, which forbids any government parastatal from running separate bank accounts, was introduced by the Goodluck Jonathan administration but effectively implemented after President Muhammadu Buhari assumed office in 2015.

Meanwhile, Leke Oluwole, the current Head of Department, defended the embattled professors when this reporter confronted him in June 2019.

When this reporter contacted the Oyo/Ogun zonal commissioner for ICPC, Stephen Pimor, in July 2019, he promised that the agency will ensure a thorough investigation.

‘Victimisation’

Mr Diji, whose salary was being deducted after he left office in 2017, also alleged that he was being victimised for revealing some of the shady activities.

PREMIUM TIMES on July 7 reported how the senior lecturer has been experiencing ‘illegal’ deductions from his salary since September 2018.

He was later dismissed from the university.

When this newspaper sent enquiries to the Vice-Chancellor, Idowu Olayinka, for the premise for the termination, he said Mr Diji violated the university rules.

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Mr Diji appealed the decision of the committee that recommended his sack and denied the allegations of lackadaisical attitude to work.

Although nothing has ensued out of the appeal, Mr Diji has vowed to pursue justice.

Ultimatum

In the letter written by Mr Diji’s lawyer, Oluronke Olumi, it was stated that barely two years after the petition, ICPC had failed to update Mr Diji.

“…ICPC does not belong to any group being untouchable so we wonder how a petition submitted since April 2018 has not received due attention and no update has been given to the complainant till date, this presents quite a worrisome trend in our own opinion,” the letter addressed to the chairman of the commission read.

He, however, requested that an “update be given on the state of the petition he submitted to the office (the Ibadan Zonal Office of the ICPC) from 9th April 2018 till date within 21 days of the receipt of this letter.”

“…That his petition of 9 April 2018 and the remainder of 11 January 2019 be revisited with the aim of seeing that justice is done and corruption is not aided and encouraged in the University of Ibadan and Nigeria as a whole”

The letter was received by ICPC on February 10.

When contacted, the spokesperson of the commission, Rasheedat Okoduwa, said she is not familiar with the case but assured that ICPC is working on it.

“We have received over 2000 petitions since 2019. But since Primor (zonal commissioner) has told you we are working on it, we are. You know we have a shortage of manpower and investigations take a long time,” she told this paper on Thursday morning.