Taiwo Akerele, the immediate past Chief of Staff to Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, was blackmailed into resigning his post, a report has claimed.
According to a report by Daily Independent, the ex-CoS was blackmailed by members of the Edo Peoples Movement (EPM), a political group in Edo APC loyal to National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.
The paper, quoting an unnamed top source in the administration, reported that Akerele had been leaking sensitive documents and information about the governor’s moves to the group.
The source reportedly said that EPM members had dug up evidence of corruption against the ex-CoS, forcing him to do the group’s bidding to betray the governor.
This was said to have caused Obaseki to lock Akerele, who is a longtime loyalist, out of his kitchen cabinet.
The source said, “Taiwo Akerele was the head of World Bank Edo State Office of State Employment and Expenditure for Results (SEEFOR) project under the Adams Oshiomhole administration.
“The project involves infrastructure development in rural areas. While overseeing the project, Akerele took liberty for licence and misappropriated funds.
“There were documents showing that he bought a house in California for $1 million and so on. “Unfortunately for him, by the time the conflict between the governor and Oshiomhole started, he actually supported the governor and was fighting on his side, saying the governor deserved a second term.
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“Later, the Oshiomhole team roped him in and showed him documents of houses, of how he misappropriated funds, and they threatened to report him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“Following the threat, he panicked and capitulated. They then started blackmailing him to reveal government documents to them. “He then became a mole and started working for the Oshiomhole team, revealing sensitive information to them.
“The governor later became worried about how sensitive information and documents were getting to the Oshiomhole camp. “It was later discovered that he was the one behind it. After that, the governor rejigged his kitchen cabinet and Akerele was locked out.
“When that happened, he was unable to get privileged information to send to the Oshiomhole camp.
“Having realised that he was no longer useful to them, the Oshiomhole camp asked him to resign or be exposed, and cause a scare that there is disarray in the Obaseki camp.
“Before he even came to submit the letter to the governor, he had already gone to the media, and that was why Crusoe Osagie, the media aide to the governor, issued a statement that the governor was not aware of his resignation.”