Former Chairman of Ibadan North Local Government, Hon. Yinka Akinbode, has debunked allegations by the Allied People’s Movement APM governorship candidate Bimbo Adekanbi that Senator Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli misappropriated funds meant for purchase of hectares of land during his tenure as Chairman of the council.
Akinbode, who served as Chairman during the second term of late Governor Abiola Ajimobi, described the allegation made by Adekanbi as “entirely untrue” and “deliberate character assassination” against Senator Alli.
In a statement personally signed by him on Sunday and made available to newsmen in Ibadan, Akinbode said he was putting the record straight.
The statement reads:
“I write this to put the record straight regarding your unfounded claim that Senator Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli misappropriated funds meant for the purchase of hectares of land for his personal use during his tenure as Chairman of Ibadan North Local Government.
“During my tenure as Chairman, I personally treated the file regarding the said land located at Erumu in Egbeda Local Government. Not only did I review the file, but I also led a delegation of key local government officials, including the Head of Local Government Administration (HLA), Director of Finance, Director of Agriculture, and the Auditor for an official on-the-spot assessment of the property.
“I even directed the Council Engineer to clear the site with a bulldozer to prepare it for agricultural initiatives by youths who were interested in farming. These official records remain intact and are open for verification by anyone.
“It was approximately two to three years ago that a local government chairman under the current administration of Governor Seyi Makinde subdivided the land into plots and sold them off. When I received the news that the land had been sold, I reached out to several past chairmen, including Senator Sarafadeen Abiodun Alli, Hon. Ademola Omotosho (APM), and Alh. Omilabu Gandi, to inform them. However, there was nothing any of them could do, as the current administration held the reins of power.
Akinbode urged Bimbo Adekanbi to desist from peddling falsehoods, saying “facts are sacred.”
