Exam malpractice: Diarrhea prevents Adeleke from showing up in court; judge orders IGP to ensure arraignment

Defeated PDP guber candidate in the Osun election will be arraigned October 31 following am Abuja federal high court order in the charges of exam malpractices brought against him and four others.

The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Monday, fixed October 31 for the arraignment of the Peoples Democratic Party’s governorship candidate in the September 22, 2018 election in Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, and four others, on charges of examination malpractices.

The judge, Justice I.E Ekwo, during a brief hearing, which was stalled due to Sen Ademola Adeleke’s absence on Monday, directed IGP Ibrahim Idris to ensure all the five defendants were brought to court for arraignment on October 31.

The IG, through the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Simon Lough, had on September 19, 2018 filed four counts of examination malpractices against Adeleke and others.

The prosecutor, Lough, informed the judge on Monday that the matter marked, FHC/ABJ/CR/156/2018, was coming up for the first time on Monday.

He accused the five defendants of committing 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.

Charged by the police alongside the senator 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 four other defendants were present in court on Monday, but Adeleke was not.
His lawyer, Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN) told the judge that the governorship his clent was not in court because of ill health.

“His Personal Assistant informed me yesterday (Sunday) that he was indisposed because he was stooling. He sent a sent medical report to that effect.”

Izinyon said he had served the medical report, showing his client was on medication, on the prosecution.

He pleaded with the court to grant a short adjournment to enable the senator recover.

The prosecuting counsel, Lough, acknowledged that the medical report had been served on him.

He also urged the court to grant a short adjournment.

Adeleke is also fighting a legal battle over his defeat in the September election, asking the election tribunal to disqualify the final result of the election he lost to the APC candidate Gboyega Oyetola.