The University of Ibadan has denied issuing a Doctor of Philosophy certificate in Economics to the Acting Rector of the Igbajo Polytechnic, Akinola Olaolu.
The Director, Public Communications, University of Ibadan, Mr Olatunji Oladejo, spoke on Monday after receiving a copy of the certificate from our correspondent.
Punch correspondent obtained the certificate from a reliable source in the school.
Punch had reported that there was a crisis at the Igbajo Polytechnic, a community-owned tertiary institution in Osun State, over the alleged fraudulent PhD certificate of the rector.
It was reported that Olaolu came into the school in December 2015 as a deputy rector to the former rector, Tanimowo Oke.
However, because Olaolu claimed to have a PhD in Economics from UI, his arrival reportedly led to the removal of Oke, who had a master’s degree as of then.
More than eight months after his arrival, he was reported to have refused to produce his purported PhD certificate, as he submitted only a notification of result to obtain the job.
A former registrar at the polytechnic, Bisi Odebunmi, was said to have also left the school after he (Odebunmi) demanded the certificate in an official memo.
A committee set up to investigate a petition by an anonymous writer on the matter said in its report that Olaolu had no proof of the PhD certificate.
When Punch contacted the UI with a copy of the notification of result, the director of public communications, Oladejo, said the varsity had no record of the rector.
The UI spokesperson said Olaolu’s purported matriculation number was fraudulent, adding that he did not have any record in the school’s thesis bank.
