National Executive Council (NEC) of the University of Ilorin Alumni Association has reacted to a submission made by one Professor Abdulrasaq Kilani that he is the National President of the association and denied him, saying “he is not our president”.
The association’s NEC, consisting of the National Executive Committee and the Chapter Chairmen, in a statement on Tuesday, authorised by the National Vice President 2 of the association, Mr, Yomi Olumuyide, in reaction to Kilani’s claim, said his submission was “unguarded and misdirected.”
The Alumni NEC in a statement by Mr. Yomi Olumuyide for the executive and Dr. Segun Ipinniwa for the Chapter Chairmen, described Kilani’s interference with the activities of the Alumni National President, Dr Stephen Olawale Fasakin, as “impersonation”, saying ”the submission by the said Mr Kilani can be viewed as that of a child who lost his way running errands for some community tyrants.”
The statement said: “Dr Stephen Olawale Fasakin and his executive committee team remains the authentic apex body of the association as the purported congress held by the Kilani group sometime this year to appoint him, (Kilani), National President and some other faceless persons as executive committee was a mere kindergarten drama and a demonstration of crass ignorance of law as a case with Suit No: KWS/92/2021 involving the association is still pending before a competent court of law in Ilorin, whereby, the status quo ante bellum is still retained.”
According to the NEC, Kilani and his group lacked adequate knowledge of the history and the current state of affairs in the association to have not known or be properly briefed about the said court case “and its implications for him, his group and those behind the wheel driving Kilani and his group to an accident waiting to happen.”
The NEC reiterated; “we have said it repeatedly and everyone can start to see it now that Mr Kilani and his group are not proven members of the University of Ilorin Alumni Association, but mere errand boys used by certain craftors to fetch their burnt chestnuts out of a raging fire. Surely, their fingers will get burnt as they have allowed themselves to be led into the race of an un-girth runner. They should start to get ready to face the wrath of the law in due cause.
“Mr Kilani and his cohorts made reference to someone ‘turning the Alumni Association to an ATM card’, that tag fits very well one of the former national presidents of the association who, willfully, made an incursion into one of the association’s bank accounts on the campus to, single-handedly, alter the signatories and, thereafter, with the help of another member whom the constitution didn’t prescribe to be signatory, illegally withdrew, as captured in the statement of account, over N54 million from the said account.
“We supposed Mr Kilani and his cohorts were not told that part of the burnt chestnuts in the fire was the act of the hijacking of the association’s accounts by the supposed caretaker committee, (which was, wrongfully, set up by the past presidents); led by Professor Jeleel Ojuade, using their influence and positions in the university to ‘frozen’ the association’s accounts, particularly, in the Unilorin Micro-finance bank, thereafter, withdrawing several millions of naira. Money, actually, generated by the Fasakin-led Exco.
“It should be pointed out that Mr Kilani and his group are also spending money from said accounts now under review. The court would not spare them as the law does not accept excuses of ignorance placed before it.
“The National Executive Council hereby calls on the EFCC, ICPC, and DSS to look into the unauthorised operation of the association’s accounts since 2021 to date.
“Also, NEC calls on the Board of Trustees, BoT, of the Unilorin Alumni Association to write to the banks restricting any transaction forthwith on the association’s account and, further, invite reputable external auditing firm to take up the auditing of the Association’s account since 2016 to date to enable the stakeholders and the general public to know who has turned the Association into an ATM.
“Dr Fasakin has been running the Association with his personal money since 2021 when the enemies of the association succeeded, via the help of the university, to hijack the association’s bank accounts from the said Fasakin-led executive.
“While we continue to stand with Dr Stephen Olawale Fasakin as the authentic National President of the University of Ilorin Alumni Association as, by certain implication, yet recognised by the court, we urge Mr Abdulrasaq Kilani to stop impersonating the National President of the Association or to be parading himself so, hence, he be caught in the web of impersonation.”