THE Nigerian Police has arraigned Osun State Senator, Ademola Adeleke, and four others before the Federal High Court, Abuja, on a four-count charge of examination malpractice.
On September 19, just days to the Osun State governorship election in which Adeleke contested as the candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP), the Nigerian police issued a statement summoning Adeleke to report himself at any police station nearest to him, for allegedly conniving with the principal of a secondary school in Osun State to allow him to sit for the 2017 SSCE organised by the National Examination Council (NECO).
But President Muhammadu Buhari ordered the police to stay action on the matter until after the governorship election. Eventually, Adeleke lost the controversial election by a slim margin to the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Gboyega Oyetola.
The case first came up for hearing before Justice I.E Ikwo on October 15 but Adeleke was not in court to take his plea, prompting the trial judge to adjourn till October 31.
At the resumption of trial on Wednesday, Adeleke and his co-accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The other defendants in the case are Aregbesola Muftau, principal of Ojo-Aro community grammar school Osun state; Gbadamosi Ojo, registrar of the school; Dare Olutope, a teacher in the school, and Sikiru Adeleke, a cousin to the senator who was also alleged to have been involved in the malpractice.
Adeleke and his cousin Sikiru were said to have conspired with the other three accused persons to fraudulently register for the June/July 2017 Senior School Certificate Examination organised by the National Examination Council’s, as students of Ojo-aro community grammar school, Osun State.
Having pleaded not guilty, the court granted bail to Adeleke and two of the other defendants who had filed their respective bail applications ahead of the arraignment. They were ordered to deposit their travelling documents passport with the court’s registrar as part of their bail conditions.