The University of Ilorin (Unilorin) Alumni Association has suspended its National President, Dr Stephen Fasakin, for alleged gross misconduct and abuse of office.
The suspension was announced on Tuesday in Ilorin by Dr Musa Abdullahi, the Acting National President of the association, at a Special National Congress held at the University Auditorium.
He stated that Fasakin was suspended from office on 16 points of allegations.
Abdullahi stated: “Fasakin has turned himself to be an impostor by unilaterally writing a letter to the Vice Chancellor casting aspersions on a legitimate process of convening the meeting of Convocation to elect its representative to the Governing Council of the University. This to say the least is uncalled for and a flagrant breach of our constitution. He singlehandedly and unilaterally awarded a N3 million contract for the production of scrolls to a phantom company without the approval of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Association. Up till now, the scrolls have not been delivered to the Association”.
Abdullahi also alleged that the contract was awarded at a time the university could not hold the convocation ceremony due to the Coronavirus lockdown.
“He unilaterally ordered the suspension of National VP 1 and National Financial Secretary and issued unjustified queries on some national officers without due process as stipulated in Article 16 of the Association’s Constitution. He unilaterally and selfishly registered the Association of Nigerian Universities Alumni (ANUA) without the approval of NEC and claims to be the pioneer President of the ill-conceived and self-serving Association. This has turned our noble association to a pariah body in the 37-year-old Conference of Alumni Association of Nigerian Universities (CAANU),” he alleged among others.
Reacting to the allegations, Fasakin described his suspension as a joke taken too far.
He stated that he has not been removed by any instrument of the association and still remains its president, saying the allegations against him were untrue and outlandish.
“I was elected the National President of the Association on the 7th March, 2020. The Constitution of the Association has provision for removal of officers. They are in possession of the Constitution. They went to school and they should let that show in their acts. A faceless fellow, unknown to any organ of our Association, has taken certain prayers to the Kwara State High Court in Suit No: KWS/92/2021 between Mr Jimoh Saliu vs Dr Fasakin Stephen Olawale & 30 others.
“This group of people didn’t allow the court to give its verdict in the matter before they resorted to a futile attempt to polarise the association by calling for an unconstitutional and an illegal congress. When I got wind of the notice of the illegal congress called by one of them who is an accomplice of Dr Musa Abdulahi, a member of our Executive Committee, who is on suspension from the Association because of certain misdemeanor committed by him. The same person, who has been parading himself as acting president of the Association, I caused letters to be written to the Commissioner of Police, the Director of DSS, Kwara State Command and the State Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, informing them of the illegal congress planned by this group of people,” he said.
Fasakin stated that the same letter was copied to the office of the Vice-Chancellor and the Registrar of the university.
“Thereof, the planned illegal congress was foiled by the University authority. Constitutionally, this group doesn’t have power to call for congress. Neither do they have the locus standi to embark on this mission they have subjected themselves to. What they are trying to do is rooted in illegality and the fruit of it is nothing but failure,” he said.
