Leadership coach and former presidential candidate of the defunct Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN), Fela Durotoye, has disclosed how he turned down a N5 billion fraudulent government deal despite intense pressure from a senior official. Speaking at the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) biannual conference in Abuja on Tuesday, Durotoye recounted how he was approached with an ethical leadership training contract to be conducted across Nigeria’s 774 local government areas.
After preparing an invoice of N1.3 billion, which he considered a fair price, Durotoye said he later received a call from the presidency, informing him that his bid was too low and that he should inflate it to N5 billion.
“When I asked why the price needed to be inflated, the official who claimed to be a pastor assured me it wasn’t fraud but a deserved ‘compensation’ for years of service to the country,” Durotoye revealed.
Refusing to compromise his values, he ended the conversation and switched off his phone. Three months later, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested some officials for embezzling N426 million from an ethical leadership training fund. Durotoye, who previously served as Special Assistant in President Bola Tinubu’s administration, emphasized the importance of integrity in leadership. He also revealed that during his time in government, he refused to accept an official car, housing, or salary, stating that some officials found it difficult to process his resignation because he could not be linked to any corruption allegations.
“Only your values can help you turn down corrupt tendencies,” he concluded.
