The police on Tuesday re-arraigned the Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate in the September 22, 2018 governorship election in Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, and four others on examination malpractices charges.
The five defendants were initially arraigned before Justice I. E Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja on October 31, but an amendment to the charges thereafter necessitated the re-arraignment which took place before the same judge on Tuesday.
With the amendment, the police increased the number of charges from four to seven which the four defendants again pleaded not guilty to on Tuesday.
Others with whom Adeleke was re-arraigned were, Sikiru Adeleke; the principal of Ojo-Aro Community Grammar School, Alhaji Aregbesola Muftau; the registrar of the school, Gbadamosi Ojo; and a teacher in the school, Dare Samuel Olutope.
The prosecution accused the five defendants of committing the offence of examination malpractices by fraudulently, through impersonation, registering Adeleke and another Sikiru Adeleke, as students of Ojo-Aro Community Grammar School, in Ojo-Aro in Osun State, for the National Examination Council’s June/July 2017 Senior School Certificate Examination in February 2017.
In the additional counts, the police accused the defendants of fraudulently registering Ademola and Sikiru Adeleke for the examination “and pursuant to the abetment awarded them seven credits, one pass and five credits respectively, and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 10(a) and punishable under section 3 of the Examination Malpractices Act Cap E15 LFN 2004.”
The Adelekes were also accused of impersonating “as students of Ojo-Aro Community Grammar School when you fraudulently registered as internal students of the school in the June/July, 2017 NECO, and having registered, conspired with unknown persons now at large to write the examination for them.”
According to the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Simon Lough, the offences were said to be contrary to and punishable under the various provisions of the Examination Malpractices Act Cap E15 LFN 2004.
After the defendants took fresh pleas on Tuesday the judge re-affirmed the bail he earlier granted them.
Considering Adeleke’s status as a serving senator, the judge granted bail to him in self-recognition but with a directive that he must enter into a bond to assure the court that he would always be present in court for his trial.
The judge also directed him to deposit his passport with the registrar of the court and must not travel out of the country without the permission of the court.
Others were granted bail in the sum of N2m each with one surety each who must be a “responsible” citizen and owner of landed property in Abuja.
They are also to submit their passports to the court.
But following an application by Adeleke’s lawyer, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), on Tuesday, the judge directed that the senator’s passport be released to him to enable him to travel abroad to seek medical check-up.
Justice Ekwo fixed February 12 for trial.
