EFCC to arraign Ogun Speaker, Oluomo today

By Uthman Salami

The Ogun State House of Assembly Speaker, Olakunle Oluomo will be arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), over alleged financial crimes today.

An anonymous source within the agency told Nigerian NewsDirect yesterday.

He said the Agency was doing the needful to ensure the arraignment of the speaker.

The Ogun State Speaker was arrested by officials of the EFCC at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Thursday morning and secretly flown to Abuja.

He was, however, granted administrative bail by the anti-graft agency. The Speaker was released based on the condition that he would return on Monday with both the assembly clerk and the accountant.

He was said to have been on the wanted list of the Commission following his failure to honour the EFCC’s invitation several times.

Oluomo and others (yet to be named) were accused of forging signatures and financial documents belonging to the state Assembly.

The EFCC National and South-West spokespersons, Mr Wilson Uwujaren and Mr Dele Oyewale, did not respond to their calls nor responded to WhatsApp and text messages from our correspondent, Saturday night.

A member of the Ogun State House of Assembly representing the ruling All Progressives Congress, who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, however, confirmed the situation.

He said, “The information you got is correct. Our speaker was arrested by officials of the EFCC earlier this morning. From what I gathered, he was alleged to have been involved in misappropriation and embezzlement of funds.”

It was further gathered that the absence of the Speaker prevented the House from observing its last Thursday sitting.

Our correspondent learnt that the Deputy Speaker, Akeem Balogun, who is statutorily saddled with the responsibility of conducting the businesses of the Assembly, also could not convene the sitting of the House.

Report had it that the Speaker’s refusal to honour the EFCC’s invitation was premised on the existing litigation instituted by the Assembly earlier in January this year at the Federal High Court sitting in Abeokuta, against the agency.

The Chairman, House Committee on Information, Yussuf Adejojo, said the Speaker’s arrest might have prevented the lawmakers from observing its sitting.