TheCable

Rotimi Akeredolu, governor of Ondo, has refuted allegations made by Kayode Ajulo, a senior advocate of Nigeria. 

On Monday, Ajulo alleged that some government officials in Ondo are forging the signature of Akeredolu on documents.

“I have it on good authority as a lawyer. Some of the commissioners, about five of them, sent memos to the governor, and the memos came back with purported approval of the governor,” Ajulo had said.

“Going through the approval, particularly the signature, checking it with all other approvals done when the governor was well, there were disparities.”

Reacting to the comments through Richard Olatunde, his chief press secretary, Akeredolu described the claim as “utterly preposterous and ludicrous”.

“If they genuinely believe there is a disparity, they should present a legitimate document to support their claims,” he said.

“We are more than willing to thoroughly investigate the matter and prosecute anyone found culpable.

“They refuse to disclose the documents that were allegedly signed or provide any information regarding the dates.

“How did they arrive at the forgery? Where is the document that supposedly contained the forged signature?

“Why are they not revealing the beneficiary of this document? By concealing such a document and engaging in unnecessary media theatrics, they are doing a great disservice to the state and the people.

“The truth of the matter is that only Governor Akeredolu can claim that his signature has been forged.

“I have personally spoken to the Governor, and he has asked me to emphatically refute this claim.

“The signature of Mr. Governor is not forged.”

Akeredolu has been absent from Ondo since June 2023 due to health reasons. The governor returned to Nigeria in the first week of September after a three-month medical leave in Germany

Since returning to the country, Akeredolu has been working from Ibadan, the Oyo state capital.

Akeredolu’s absence from Ondo has become a source of concern to several stakeholders and spawned a political crisis that President Bola Tinubu had to wade into.