Senator pledges to sue Governor Adeleke over government vehicles allegation
Senator representing Osun West Senatorial District, Adelere Oriolowo, threatened Governor Ademola Adeleke with legal action for alleged defamation.
This is an allegation by the Asset Recovery Committee set up by the government that Mr Orilowo converted five machines belonging to the Osun State Agricultural Development Program for personal use.
The committee also accused former governor Gboyega Oyetola, his wife, Kafayat and some officials who served under the former governor of taking away government vehicles worth 3.2 billion naira after their mandate.
Olawale Rasheed, the spokesman for Governor Adeleke, had also urged those affected to return the vehicles or face the law.
Senator Oriolowo, at a press conference on Tuesday, said the allegations against him were false.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker has given the state government seven days to withdraw the allegations.
He also sought compensation of 500 million naira for alleged damage to his reputation.
"I therefore requested my lawyers to write to the state government demanding a letter of apology within seven (7) days and also to pay the sum of Five Hundred Million Naira (500,000 000 N) as compensation for unquantifiable damage to my name and integrity,” he said.
“My lawyer's letter has since been received by the government on December 30, 2022 and I hope this government will backtrack, remove the post and apologize to me. Otherwise, I will use all legal means at my disposal to obtain justice."
Mr. Oriolowo said the allegations further damaged his reputation, noting that many people called him about it.
"Since publication, many well-meaning people inside and outside the shores of Nigeria have continuously contacted me for clarification and solidarity."
When the allegations were made earlier, PREMIUM TIMES called and messaged Mr. Oriolowo for his response but he did not respond.
READ ALSO: Governor Adeleke suspends other Osun officials over alleged corruption
The lawmaker said the vehicles they accused him of taking away are in the possession of the Ministry of Rural Development.
"This material, which then belonged to OSSADEP, existed when I left the agency 15 years ago. To my knowledge, some of it was transferred to the Ministry of Rural Development to assist the government. Simple due diligence or investigation by the committee would have revealed the salient fact that the equipment is still owned by the Osun State Government.”
Reacting to the threat, Mr. Rasheed said the reports indicting the senator came from a report by government agencies
“The first thing we need to realize is that the committee got all the reports from these agencies under oath, the committee got these details from OSSADEP and ORAM with the oath administered to their representative by the commissioner for oaths, so the committee did not fabricate the report that was made public,” he said.
"T...
Senator representing Osun West Senatorial District, Adelere Oriolowo, threatened Governor Ademola Adeleke with legal action for alleged defamation.
This is an allegation by the Asset Recovery Committee set up by the government that Mr Orilowo converted five machines belonging to the Osun State Agricultural Development Program for personal use.
The committee also accused former governor Gboyega Oyetola, his wife, Kafayat and some officials who served under the former governor of taking away government vehicles worth 3.2 billion naira after their mandate.
Olawale Rasheed, the spokesman for Governor Adeleke, had also urged those affected to return the vehicles or face the law.
Senator Oriolowo, at a press conference on Tuesday, said the allegations against him were false.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker has given the state government seven days to withdraw the allegations.
He also sought compensation of 500 million naira for alleged damage to his reputation.
"I therefore requested my lawyers to write to the state government demanding a letter of apology within seven (7) days and also to pay the sum of Five Hundred Million Naira (500,000 000 N) as compensation for unquantifiable damage to my name and integrity,” he said.
“My lawyer's letter has since been received by the government on December 30, 2022 and I hope this government will backtrack, remove the post and apologize to me. Otherwise, I will use all legal means at my disposal to obtain justice."
Mr. Oriolowo said the allegations further damaged his reputation, noting that many people called him about it.
"Since publication, many well-meaning people inside and outside the shores of Nigeria have continuously contacted me for clarification and solidarity."
When the allegations were made earlier, PREMIUM TIMES called and messaged Mr. Oriolowo for his response but he did not respond.
READ ALSO: Governor Adeleke suspends other Osun officials over alleged corruption
The lawmaker said the vehicles they accused him of taking away are in the possession of the Ministry of Rural Development.
"This material, which then belonged to OSSADEP, existed when I left the agency 15 years ago. To my knowledge, some of it was transferred to the Ministry of Rural Development to assist the government. Simple due diligence or investigation by the committee would have revealed the salient fact that the equipment is still owned by the Osun State Government.”
Reacting to the threat, Mr. Rasheed said the reports indicting the senator came from a report by government agencies
“The first thing we need to realize is that the committee got all the reports from these agencies under oath, the committee got these details from OSSADEP and ORAM with the oath administered to their representative by the commissioner for oaths, so the committee did not fabricate the report that was made public,” he said.
"T...
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