By Lukman Olabiyi
Special Fraud Unit (SFU) of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has described Professor Abayomi Sunday Fasina, the Vice Chancellor of Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State (FUOYE) as a serial fraudster which has case to answer on various allegations level against him and others.
SFU stated this, while pleading with the Federal High Court, Lagos
to dismiss a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by Professor Fasina and two others, seeking to stop police from investigating them over alleged fraud.
In the suit marked FHC/L/CS/684/2021, other applicants alongside Fasina are the University’s Acting Director of Works, Mrs. Bridget Oyaola and Chief Internal Auditor,
Mr. Sulaiman Olajide Usman
Among the reliefs sought by the applicants include a declaration that they are entitle to know and be inform of the details of any Investigation against them by the police.
And a declaration that physical invasion of the university’s premises by the respondents in an attempt arrest and detain the Vice Chancellor in a manner unknown to law, constitute a flagrant violation of their rights as guarantee by the Constitution.
However, the police in a counter-affidavit deposed to by Supol Segun Akeregun, filed by its counsel, Chukwu Agwu, asked the court to dismiss the applicants’ suit for being frivolous and abuse of court process.
The deponent averred that it is untrue that the police invaded the premises of the Vice Chancellor on June 17 and 18, 2021, or any day at all but only visited the University’s premises to serve an invitation of the Vice Chancellor over some criminal allegations which the police were investigating.
He also stated that the petition against Fasina, is not only in respect of frauds allegedly perpetrated as Vice Chancellor in February 2021, but includes his tenure in 2017, when he was Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Administration till February, 2021 when he became the Vice Chancellor of the university.
And that the Vice Chancellor has been heading more than eleven (11) committees as Deputy Vice Chancellor from 2017 to February, 2021 before he became the Vice Chancellor of the institution.
The deponent also averred that the Vice Chancellor as the then Chairman of TETfund Committee of the University and about other 10 committees, allegedly fraudulently converted to himself and laundered about N13,864,925.00 through his son, Fasina Oluwadamilola Tosin, who is a Post- graduate student at Sterling University, Scotland.
Furthermore, the deponent stated that from the available documents in the record obtained in the course of investigation of the petition against the applicants, revealed that, the Vice Chancellor is involved in fraudulent conversion of funds from Ekiti State University as salaries while he was still receiving salaries as Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Administration at Federal University Oye-Ekiti.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke, has fixed September 20, 2021, for hearing of all processes in the suit.