Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, says the sudden resignation of Bayo Ojulari as the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has nothing to do with him.
Denying that he employed underhand tactics in compelling Ojulari to step down from his lucrative oil industry job, Olukoyede described the allegations as ‘defamatory and injurious’ to his integrity.
In a statement issued on behalf of the Commission in Abuja on Wednesday, EFCC spokesman Dele Oyewale quoted Olukoyede as saying that “The publications and the imputations conveyed by them are so damning and cannot be ignored or treated with levity”.
The statement said Olukoyede, through his legal counsel Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika (SAN), denied any suggestion that he was acting at the behest of British-Nigerian oil mogul, Olatimbo Ayinde or that his actions were influenced by external political figures.
The allegations stemmed from an August 2, 2025, online publication which alleged that Olukoyede and the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Adeola Ajayi, pressured Ojulari into signing a resignation letter during a closed-door meeting in Abuja.
The statement further said that a letter signed by the Counsel Olumide-Fusika, and addressed to the Editor of the publication, reiterated the gravity of the claims and insisted on corrective measures.
“He, therefore, demanded that the medium acknowledge your wrongdoing, expressly admit that what you published and imputed against my client are false, apologise for it unreservedly and retract and pull down the stories from your newspaper website and social media handles,” the statement added.
Furthermore, the anti-corruption Czar said the story portrayed him as “someone that has betrayed and subverted public trust by submitting the authority of his public office and trust as Chairman of the EFCC to the dictates and directives of one Olatimbo Ayinde.”
While labelling the report as ‘entirely fabricated’, Olukoyede demanded an official apology and complete removal of the story from the outlet’s digital platforms within 48 hours.
This is as the legal team warned that failure to comply would lead to litigation against the online platform.
Recalled the contentious report also suggested that Ojulari was interrogated over his purported links to British-Nigerian oil mogul, Olatimbo Ayinde, who is reportedly close to key figures in the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.
Also, in its follow-up story, the news platform had further alleged that the erstwhile NNPCL boss was later invited to the Presidential Villa, where First Lady, Senator Remi Tinubu reportedly kicked against his resignation from the lucrative job.
