By Ayodele Oni
Ondo State House of Assembly has confirmed the detention of two of its officials by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) but that the money in contention, N2.4 million is intact in the assembly’s bank account.
Mr Bode Adeyelu, the Clerk of the Assembly and Mr Bankole Felemu Gbegudu, representing Akoko South West Constituency two are being detained at the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over N2.4 million fund meant for a seminar in December 2019.
The House Chairman on Youth, Information and Sports Development, Mr Gbenga Omole, while reacting to media report on the issue, explained that the money was never misappropriated.
“I want to tell you officially that there is no fund missing. The N2.4 million is in the bank account of the assembly. That is the truth and you can do your investigation,” he said.
He accused the former Deputy Speaker of the Assembly, Mr Ogundeji Iroju, of being behind a petition to EFCC on the alleged missing fund that warranted the EFCC’s invitation of the concerned people.
He added that it was not the first set of people that would be invited by the commission.
”I want to tell you that Mr O.J Afolabi, the former Director of Expenditure, now a Permanent Secretary was invited and he has come back.
”The Deputy Clerk of this House, Mr Olowogoroye, was invited and he has come back.
”So, it is only now the clerk and Hon. Felemu, the Chairman of the House Committee on Tertiary Education that are there now,” he said.
According to him, the duo honoured the EFCC’s invitation on Thursday last week, saying that their bail conditions could not met over the weekend.
”They were invited and I think interrogation is still going on.
“Though their bail conditions were not met over the weekend but I can assure you that maybe before the end of today’s work, they will be granted bail,” he stated.
The Assembly’s spokesman explained that the money in question could not be made available for the seminar that was ought to have taken place in December 2019, adding that the people involved could not make it for the seminar.
He said that the fund was released in May 2020, which he reiterated was still in the assembly’s bank account.
