The
trial of Prof. Benjamin Adefemi Ogunbodede, a former Director- General, DG,
Institute of Agriculture Research and Training, IART, Ibadan, Oyo State, and two others continued on
Monday, December 5, 2016 with a prosecution witness, Toluola Tola-Ukaba, giving detailed account of
how in connivance with his co-defendants, he used different company names to
divert money meant for the payment of hazard allowance of the staff of the
Institute.
Ogunbodede is being
prosecuted alongside Zacheaus Tejumola, Adenose Clement and
Jalekun Omotowoju on a 17-count charge of conspiracy,
misappropriation and diversion of funds to the tune of N115million before
Justice N. Ayo Emmanuel of the Federal High Court, sitting in Ibadan, by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Trouble
started when the Academic Staff Union of IARTA petitioned the EFCC, alleging that the former
DG falsely claimed to have used the sum of N115million to pay hazard allowance
to its members in December 2013. They also alleged that, he claimed to have
used the sum of N15million to harvest crops, when he actually spent N800,000
(eight hundred thousand naira only)
Tola-Ukaba, an operative
of the EFCC, while being led in evidence
by the prosecuting counsel, Nkereuwen Anana, stated that the EFCC received a
petition dated 17th December, 2012 from the Joint Action Committee of Staff
Union of the IART, Ibadan regarding the alleged offence.
“The team handling the
matter wrote letters to different banks to furnish the Commission with
necessary information regarding the transaction that occurred in the personnel
emolument account of staff of the institute (IART)”, Tola-Ukaba said.
According to her, the
analysis of the information received from one of the banks, Access bank showed
that the Institute received subvention from the Ministry of Agriculture and
Rural Development to the tune of N606million in two tranches of N303million in
November and December, 2010.
“A transaction of
N177million was initiated from the personnel emolument account to another
account of the Institute titled ‘Staff Club Account’ domiciled in Access Bank
and whose signatory were the 1st and 2nd defendants (Ogunbodede and Tejumola).
“A detailed statement of
account of the ‘Staff Club Account’ revealed that N177million hit the account
in two tranches of N81million and N96million. From this account, several
withdrawals were made mostly via cheques”, Tola-Ukaba said.
She added that, “when
the operatives of EFCC requested for the cheques for the withdrawal from Access
Bank, the following were discovered: the cheques were signed by the 1st and 2nd
defendants; cheques totaling the sum N156million were drawn in the names of
some companies belonging to Jalekan Omotowoju; cheques totaling N15million were drawn in the name of Kunle Ojo
and N7.5million was drawn in the name of Adenose Clement".
Further findings
according to the witness showed that, N177million was moved from the personnel
emolument account as hazard allowance for staff of the Institute which was
never paid.
“The payments made to Omotowoju were not in respect of any contract awarded to
him”, Tola-Ukaba added.
The case has been
adjourned to January 16, 2017 for continuation of trial.
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