Present yourself for prosecution, Ogun APC tells Adebutu

Oladipupo Adebutu, the Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate for governor in 2023, has been welcomed back to the nation by the All Progressives Congress chapter in Ogun State.

After spending almost seven months in the UK, Adebutu returned.

He was requested by the Ogun APC to surrender to the police and refute the allegations of vote-buying and money-laundering that the federal government had preferred be made against him.

The APC made the demand in a statement released in Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, on Tuesday by Olusola Blessed, its assistant publicity secretary.

The PDP candidate left the country “in suspicious circumstances,” according to the ruling party, after the Abeokuta Criminal Investigation Department invited him to respond to a case of conspiracy, electoral offences, and money laundering that was received from the Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecution of the Federation. The invitation came in a letter dated April 16, 2023, and signed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Muhammad Babakura.

The party then pushed for Adebutu to follow the right course and report to the police.

The party declared, “We welcome Adebutu back to his fatherland if it is true that he left the country in April of this year under the guise of a medical vacation and has since returned, then he deserves our best wishes.”

“We further implore him to surrender to the authorities and refute the accusations of vote-buying and money-laundering made against him in the March 18, 2023, governorship and House of Assembly elections, for which certain members and representatives of his party have already been prosecuted.”

According to the statement, on December 9, 2023, the Ogun State PDP disclosed the identities of its members, Ogunbona Hammed, Tiramisu Waliu, Egunsola Owolabi, Moliki Badmus, and Sanni Adejoke, who were accused of buying votes by the federal government.

The suspects, according to PDP, 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘋𝘳𝘶𝘨 𝘓𝘢𝘸 𝘌𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘈𝘨𝘦ncy 𝘪𝘯 various locations around the state during 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 18 2023 g𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘈𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘺’𝘴 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯s, following which ATM cards allegedly meant for vote buying were found on them, adding that Adebutu’s name featured prominently in the police investigation and the subsequent charges by the Federal Government against the suspects.

The statement read, “He ought to have the honour to turn himself in to the police, as promised by his attorneys in the May 2, 2023, letter.”

“He ought to consent to receiving court documents about the allegations of vote-buying and money laundering from the federal government and maintain his court date.

“Hopefully, Adebutu would have shown up so he could get the court documents and be tried alongside the others at the following session.

“The Ogun State High Court, Abeokuta, Honourable Justice Abiodun Akinyemi will resume the trial of the PDP members who have already been charged with vote-buying and money laundering in February 2024.”