A former Registrar and Chief Executive of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Professor Dibu Ojerinde was, on Monday, picked up by operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for allegedly defrauding the Board to the tune of N900m during his nine-year tenure as the boss of admission body for universities in Nigeria.
He is currently in detention over allegations of multiple identities, abuse of office, money laundering, tax evasion and making false statements to public officials.
The former JAMB boss was also being questioned by the anti-graft agency for allegedly awarding fraudulent contracts to shell companies that cannot be traced.
According to a statement on Wednesday by the ICPC spokesperson, Azuka Ogugua, Ojerinde allegedly awarded contracts for the supply of pencils and erasers at the cost of N450 million each to Double 07 Concept Ltd. and Pristine Global Concept Ltd., respectively, between 2013 and 2014 while heading JAMB.
The commission said, “There is no evidence to show that the items which are examination materials were supplied as the contractors cannot be found.
‘’Similar contracts were allegedly awarded to Solid Figures Limited, Holywalk Limited and other companies for various sums without any trace of executions.
‘’Professor Ojerinde is being held on a remand warrant and will soon be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigation.’’
The Federal Government had last year seized some of Ojerinde’s properties through an interim forfeiture order granted by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The court said the properties were likely acquired with public funds and thus represent proceeds of unlawful corrupt activities.
Ojerinde was the JAMB boss between 2007 and 2016 but after his exit, his successor, Ishaq Oloyede, remitted unspent funds of about N5 billion, an amount Ojerinde did not remit in his nine years in office.
