The family of late Hon Temitope Olatoye Sugar, the lawmaker representing Lagelu/Akinyele Federal constituency in the House of Representatives who was assassination on March 9, has debunked all negative allegations and stories being peddled about the late lawmaker, describing such news as fake news and handwork of mischief makers.
The Olatoye family, led by Hon Olajide Olatoye, the elder brother of the late lawmaker while speaking to journalists at the Olatoye Sugar Foundation office at Bodija in Ibadan, on behalf of the family, friends and political associates of late Temitope Sugar, stated that all the negative stories trailing his brother’s death is a campaign of calumny on the late lawmaker.
The family first formally announced the death of their son who they described as a philanthropist per excellence, adding that, “the family’s attention has been drawn to several negative publications trending on the social media including photographs of the dying Hon Sugar, we wish to maintain that all the negative impression about late Temitope Olatoye Sugar and the family started with the gruesome and horrific photographs published by the management of the University College Hospital, Ibadan in collusion with the political enemies of late Hon Sugar. “We maintain also that all these attacks on the person of late Temitope Olatoye Sugar is best described as fake news and handiwork of the mischief makers and political enemies of late Hon Sugar who planned his killing just to gain cheap political advantage. More particular about these negative impressions is the statement credited to one Mrs Folake stating that late Sugar was once her tenant.
“We hereby deny the assertion as it is without evidence. I, therefore, call on the general public to disregard the stories. For the avoidance of doubt, late Sugar all through his stay at Osiele in Abeokuta, Ogun State before moving to his personal house, lived in two different houses that were owned by landlords and had no tenancy relation whatsoever with the said Folake.
“It has also come to the attention of the family, the defamatory and maligning reports and publications published by some online mediums and we have instructed our lawyers to commence the necessary procedural legal process preparatory to seek legal redress,” the family stated.
The Olatoye family added that it is pertinent to state that the deceased lawmaker lived a fulfilled and philanthropic life and was throughout his life behind the people, adding that “this accounts for the reason why he was loved by the people. Despite our grief, we found this clarification necessary to debunk all the attacks on the person of late Hon Sugar and the family orchestrated by his political enemies and we urge the general public to disregard same and remain calm.
“We wish to thank our friends, well-wishers and the general public for their support and for standing behind the family at this trying moment as we urge the security agencies to ensure that the perpetrators of this dastard and heinous crime are brought to book,” they said.