Payroll While Abroad? Questions Trail Ogun Governor’s Aide Amid Canada Refugee Claim

Serious questions are emerging over payroll integrity and staff oversight in Ogun State following allegations that a media aide to Governor Dapo Abiodun may have relocated to Canada to pursue refugee protection while allegedly remaining on the state government’s payroll.

Multiple sources within the state civil service told this newspaper that Emmanuel Ojo, Senior Special Assistant on New Media, is still listed as active staff attached to the governor’s office, despite reports that he has been outside Nigeria for an extended period. Official records confirming resignation, approved leave, or disengagement could not be immediately established as of press time.

At the heart of the controversy is not migration itself, but a fundamental governance issue. Was a serving government aide physically absent from duty while continuing to receive public funds, and if so, who authorised it?

Public service regulations require formal clearance for extended absence, foreign relocation, or resignation. Failure to comply raises potential red flags ranging from administrative negligence to payroll abuse. Analysts note that if salary payments continued during an unapproved absence, the issue would extend beyond one individual to systemic weaknesses within the state’s personnel and payroll controls.

While refugee and asylum applications are protected by strict privacy laws, travel history, payroll records, and staff nominal rolls are verifiable public-interest documents. These records can establish whether the aide remained in active service, whether payments continued, and whether supervising authorities were aware of his whereabouts.

The Ogun State Government has not issued an official response to the allegations. Officials contacted said they were not formally briefed and declined comment.

As scrutiny intensifies, the case is fast becoming a test of transparency in an era when the “Japa” migration wave is colliding with weak institutional monitoring. The central question remains unanswered: how many public officials may be absent from duty, abroad, yet still quietly drawing salaries from state coffers?

Dapo Abiodun’s Political Vendetta: What Kayode Akinmade Must Learn Before Speaking for Ogun State

The cries of political vendetta against Governor Dapo Abiodun are no longer whispers — they are now a roar across Ogun State. The latest trigger? Fresh threats to demolish properties linked to former governor and current senator, Otunba Gbenga Daniel.

At the center of the governor’s defense machinery is his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, who has been quick to dismiss the warnings and concerns from Senator Daniel’s camp as nothing more than a “wolf cry.”

But Akinmade — an indigene of Idanre in Ondo State and a former Commissioner for Information under Governor Olusegun Mimiko — must be reminded that Ogun politics is not his native Ondo politics. Here, scars run deep, memories are long, and bulldozer politics is not easily forgiven.

Only two years ago, in a shocking midnight raid, Governor Abiodun ordered the demolition of a multimillion-naira complex in Ijebu Ode belonging to Yeye Olufunke Daniel, wife of the senator. The ₦5 billion structure, completed and awaiting commissioning, was flattened under the cover of darkness. Locals still say, “A dynamite would have done a cleaner job.”

At the time, the governor swore it wasn’t political — just as he is swearing now. But the court of public opinion and subsequent legal tussles told another story: it was pure political vendetta.

This is the same governor who, on September 11, 2023, publicly boasted of how he “saved” another property of OGD from demolition back when he assumed office in 2019, trying to paint himself as a magnanimous facilitator. Yet the contradiction is glaring: how does a man who once sought refuge in Asoludero Court — OGD’s stronghold — in March 2019, now target the very symbol of the support that helped him into office?

Let’s refresh memories for Mr. Akinmade: in 2019, when Dapo Abiodun was fighting to survive politically against the hostile machinery of his predecessor, it was OGD who publicly endorsed him, opening political doors and mobilizing his network to ensure Abiodun’s victory. That was no small favor — it was a kingmaker’s blessing.

Today, that same Asoludero Court is reportedly on the demolition list. If this isn’t political vendetta, then the word has lost its meaning.

So, Mr. Akinmade, before you rush to insult the intelligence of Ogun people with your press statements, thread softly. This is not Ondo State where you can play outsider politics without consequence. Ogun people know their history, their heroes, and their betrayers.

And tell your boss this: no bulldozer will ever erase the political memory of Ogun State. If he tries, the backlash will be louder than any machine he sends in the night.