Paul Erewuba
The Head of Department (HOD) of Sports Management Studies, Nigeria Institute for Sports (NIS), Dr. Francis Akinremi has pleaded with the Minister of Sports, Sunday Dare, to help unravel the mystery behind the missing of his official file from the institute’s Registrar’s office since 2014.
Akinremi, who said he was preparing towards his meritorious retirement, fears that his file, which he alleged was seized and doctored, could be used against him in the future.
Speaking to journalists at a press conference in Lagos, Akinremi said his ordeal with the former Director of the Institute, Dr. O.S.A Ikhioya, began in 2014.
He said: “My missing file was as a result of victimisation, character assassination, injustice and inhuman treatment on my person when I was the Chairman of the Academic Union of NIS, for basically requesting our legitimate rights concerning the welfare of staff.
“I was framed up and arrested for allegedly fraudulently obtaining N50,000 from players in 2003. I was taken to Panti and straight to Magistrate Court, Yaba, Lagos. I won the case.
“Dr. Ikhioya set up a committee, headed by former Deputy Director, S.A Ga’anda, to look into my case and mandated former Acting Registrar, Dr. Obajimi, to head the panel. The panel concluded that Dr. Ikhioya sent his Personal Assistant, Abari Solomon, to collect my file from her office, and she said the file was registered in the file movement booklet and it was never brought back to her office.
“The report by a panel of investigation, headed by Mrs Omezi Mercy Kemi, concluded that Dr. Ikhioya should be contacted to state the whereabouts of the file after the council meeting of October 23, 2014, and that he should also be made to answer why he refused to hand over the file to the council, as said by the former Acting Registrar, Dr Obajimi. But, up till now, he never did until he left.
“My file was not missing in transit; it is a public document, a new official file was re-opened for me, but my details were doctored, so as to frame me up in future. I, therefore, plead with the minister to come to my rescue.”
Efforts to get the former Director, Dr. Ihioya, to comment proved abortive, as he refused to answer several calls put to him.
But current NIS Registrar, N.A Adenoye, while speaking to Daily Sun in his office, confirmed that the file was actually missing, and later traced to the office of the former director.
“When we assumed office, we traced the file to the office of Dr. Ikhioya. The report was sent to the ministry and we were advised to open another file for Dr. Francis Akinremi. We did and all the documents we could gather were put inside the new file and was certified,” Adenoye said.