- He said he needed to respond to the allegation contained in the report because of its weighty nature
The chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, has opened up on his alleged involvement in the reported abduction and forcing of Bayo Ojulari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, to resign.
An online media outlet, Peoples Gazette, had reported last Saturday that Olukoyede and Adeola Ajayi, the Director General of the Department of State Services, DSS, orchestrated the abduction of the state-owned oil company boss, took him to a secret location and forced him to step down.
According to the platform, the duo were acting at the behest of British-Nigerian oil mogul, Olatimbo Ayinde, who was said to be a mistress of President Bola Tinubu. Ojulari was said to have been intensely interrogated about what he knew about Ayinde.
Reacting to the report, Olukoyede denied involvement in the purported forced resignation of Ojulari.
He said he needed to respond to the allegation contained in the report because of its weighty nature.
In a statement on Wednesday, EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale said Olukoyede, through his lawyer Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika (SAN), described the reports as defamatory and injurious to his integrity.
“The publications and the imputations conveyed by them are so damning and cannot be ignored or treated with levity,” the statement quoted.
It added that Olukoyede has not betrayed public trust “by submitting the authority of his public office and trust as Chairman of the EFCC to the dictates and directives of one Olatimbo Ayinde.”
The EFCC chairman has now demanded an official apology and complete removal of the story from the outlet’s digital platforms within 48 hours, threatening a lawsuit