A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) sitting in Apo, Abuja, has sentenced a senior staff of the University of Ibadan, Mr. Adedeji Taiwo, to three years, six months imprisonment for forging the signature of the former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Julius Okojie.
Taiwo was prosecuted in July 2016, before Justice Olukayode Adeniyi by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on a 4-count charge on forgery and making a false statement to constituted authority, as well using his position to confer an unfair advantage on himself.
Counsel to ICPC, Ekoi Akponimisingha told the court that the offence violated Sections 19 and 25 (1) (a) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000 and punishable under Section 19 and 25 (1) (b) of the same Act respectively.
The commission accused Taiwo, who was a Principal Executive Officer, Passage and Protocol of the University of Ibadan of presenting a forged letter purportedly from NUC to the Director Consular and Immigration Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, with intent to facilitate the approval of a Note-Verbale for one Mr. Lukemon Jegede Adeyemi, who was not a staff of the University of Ibadan, to enable him attend a conference at the National University of Seoul, South Korea.
The charge sheet read in part, “That you Adedeji Taiwo, while being in the employment of the University of Ibadan used your position as Principal Executive Officer, Passage and Protocol to confer unfair advantage on one Mr. Jegede Lukemon Adedeyemi by introducing him to the Director, Consular and Immigration Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as a staff in the Department of Psychology, faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ibadan, via a letter captioned ‘Request for Note-Verbale, when you knew he is not a staff of the said University and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.”
The trial judge, Adeniyi, handing down the judgment found the accused guilty of the charge and sentenced him to three and half years in jail with an option to pay fine of N300, 000. 00
