Folarin Agunbiade, one of the frontline resource persons with the Central Bank of Nigeria [CBN] has accused Dr Elijah Adewale, the former Special Adviser on Education to Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola of taking over his project through a dubious means. The highly intelligent and respected chartered accountant alleged that the politician who is well known as Jah , in a brazen show of power, fraudulently hijacked the Ifako-Ijaye annex of the Lagos State Polytechnic, the project he conceived as far back as 1997 and delivered in 2008.
The consultant who has conducted series of courses on revenue generation and financial engineering for local government executives and councilors in Lagos and Cross-Rivers states since the advent of the civil rule in 1999 alleged that when Dr Elijah Adewale, the proprietor of the now refurbished and remodeled Damiland Group of Schools became the Special Adviser on education to Governor Fashola, he went to his office and requested that he assists him in the Moneyminder Business School proposal for the Ifako-Ijaye annex of the Lagos State Polytechnic, because there was no presence of the state university or state polytechnic in the local government area.
‘’Also, I told Dr Adewale that the glory and credit for the annex will be to his political advantage as an achievement he made while in office and furthermore, I asked him to join me as a partner in the venture by nominating his wife to be my partner. Initially he declined interest, later, when the project was about to be approved, he agreed to the partnership arrangement on 50-50 percentage equal financial contribution and profit sharing basis. Also, he [Jah] emphasized that since he will not have time, I should be the managing partner in charge of the day-to-day running of the annex’’
‘’After the approval for the annex was secured, he said his wife will not be able to participate on the day-to-day running of the annex, but rather, she will be represented by one Mr. Yinka Laleye and that the representative should be given the post of Director of Studies and should be a signatory to all the vouchers and cheques on his behalf. Indifference to Dr. Elijah Adewale’s age and status, I accepted his representative and gave him space and furniture in my [then] office at 164, Iju Water Works Road, made [him] a signatory to Moneyminder Business School account at First Bank Nigeria PLC. Though, the Moneyminder Business School is my private outfit incorporated many years ago before the joint venture agreement.’’ Mr. Agunbiade stated. Few weeks after Mr. Yinka Laleye became the director of studies, he started to act the script allegedly written by his master, Dr. Jah. ‘He became arrogant, bossy and lawless in the office’ Agunbiade, who is now working in the vineyard of God as a Clergy of the Anglican Communion revealed. The accountant turned reverend disclosed that he brought Laleye’s misdemeanors to the attention of Jah Adewale, in the presence of one Mr. Fadayomi [ who is now said to be the Chairman of the All Progressive Congress,
APC, Ifako-Ijaye LG chapter] and a political associate of Dr Adewale. And, the ex- special adviser was said to had promised to withdraw the nomination of Mr. Yinka Laleye, ‘but only for him to sponsor him to commit worse atrocities’
However, in one swell swoop, Mr. Laleye was alleged to have committed another gross unethical atrocity of complying about 36 students’ names and gave the names out to course lecturers to be awarded biased or special marks for continuous assessment. Mr. Agunbiade, who is known to be a top notch consultant with the likes of Cadbury, Chartered Bank and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation [NDIC] stated that the concerned lecturers brought the unethical behaviors of Laleye to his attention and he also made it known to Dr. Adewale. ‘’ However, I found out that rather than change his nominee, he [Jah] gave him more support [and] encourage him to operate from an outside office, instructed to instigate students to undertake unwholesome attitudes to their examinations and all sort of exam malpractices and gradually the annex [ became] an arena for lawlessness’’
Dr Elijah Adewale was later said to have come with the idea of incorporating a new business name to be called AGOFE NIGERIA ENTERPRISES, which is said to be in the name of his wife, Mrs. B.E Adewale and Mr. Folarin Agunbiade. Also, the 50 percent equal ownership ratio was retained. ‘’We opened a new bank account with his wife and myself as co-signatory to the bank account and all vouchers. After we opened the new bank account, I requested that we transfer all money from Moneyminder Business School to Agofe Nig Enterprises. So that I can be freed from the burden of reporting to his surrogate Mr Yinka Laleye, but Dr Elijah Adewale for the best reason known to him refused’’
We impeccably gathered that a new dimension to the whole sorry saga occurred few weeks after the incorporation of Agofe Nigeria Enterprises. The CBN Consultant, who is said to be a close ally of American Senator Eric Adams, a one-time captain in the New York City Police Department turned politico, had got to his office to discover that the office generator was missing. ‘’The following day, I called in Retired Captain Ogundolu of Gabkins Nigeria Limited, to carry out thorough investigation as to
the theft of the generator. About a week later I got a written report of the investigation which indicted Mr. Monday Ogboye, the Accounting Officer’’
‘’Thereafter, I started monitoring the accounting officer and made sure that he does not go home with company’s funds in his possession. I succeeded in ensuring that N309, 850 in his possession was handed over to me. And, the following morning, I requested that he gave me the breakdown of receipts which he could not give. On the evening of the same day I called a staff meeting and apprehended the staff with report of the investigation. Mr. Monday Ogboye walked out of the meeting and didn’t report in the office thereafter. On the third day, I gave a copy of the report to Mrs. Adewale and inform her of the development. And, in the afternoon of the same day, I reported the matter to the nearest police station because I believed that Mr. Ogboye was probably on the run’’
‘’While I was at the police station with the DCO, I received a call on my cell phone that my attention was needed at the police station on an allegation by the same Mr. Monday Ogboye that stole the generator.
Luckily enough, he walked into the police station and in fact, I found out that he had made the complaint two days earlier. I made my statement to the investigating police officer with a copy of the investigation report by Gabkins Nig. Ltd and left Mr. Monday Ogboye at the police station. Three days after, I called at the police station only to be told that Dr. Elijah Adewale had come to bail Mr. Ogboye, the accounting officer who stole the generator and promised the police officers that he was ready to buy another generator to replace the stolen generator but that I stole his own money [N309, 850] that I collected from Monday Ogboye. I found his [Jah] allegation against my person curious, his action of bailing Mr. Ogboye irrational, except that he sponsored the theft in the first place’’
After this particular unfortunate episode, Mr. Agunbiade, a native of Ilesha [Osun state] disclosed that he then reported Dr. Adewale to His Excellence, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the governor of Osun state, who is said to be a close political associate of Dr Jah. But, gathered that the former adviser to GovernorFashola, failed to honor the truce meetings summoned by Gov. Aregbesola. And, this he did on three occasions. Now, Dr. Jah is said to have relocated the annex of the polytechnic to Damiland Schools at Iju gate, Ifako-Ijaye local government area, which is reported to be one of his many private school campuses.
YEMOJANEWS exclusively gathered that the CBN consultant, Folarin Agunbiade has now dragged the ex Special Adviser to Lagos High Court in his mission to reclaim his business and properties.
