Renowned leadership coach and former presidential candidate of the defunct Alliance for New Nigeria, Fela Durotoye, has revealed how he rejected an opportunity to siphon N5bn in a fraudulent government deal, despite immense pressure from an official who claimed to be a pastor.

Speaking on Tuesday, at the ongoing biannual conference of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria in Abuja, Durotoye recounted the experience, which he described as a test of integrity.

This is according to a Church Times Nigeria report on Wednesday.

According to him, the official approached him with a lucrative training contract, insisting that he had already been selected for the job.

The programme involved training people in all 774 local government areas of Nigeria within eight weeks, and Durotoye was assured that he fit the criteria perfectly.

Upon request, he prepared an invoice, ensuring the cost was strictly based on actual expenses.

His team calculated a fair price of N1.3 bn for the training.

But just three days later, a call from the presidency changed everything.

“I got a call congratulating me that I had secured the job.

“But they said the amount I was asking for was too small. They promised to add N700m to make it N2bn. Then they asked me to submit an invoice for N5bn,” Durotoye recalled.

Alarmed, he questioned the ethics of inflating the price, especially for a training centred on ethical leadership.

The official, however, dismissed his concerns.

“The man assured me he wasn’t ripping off Nigeria.

“He said he had served the country and deserved compensation. When I reminded him that the blessings of God make one rich and add no sorrow, he fired back, saying, ‘There is no sorrow in this one. You have been doing well for Nigeria. It is time for Nigeria to do well for you,’” Durotoye said.

As pressure mounted, Durotoye claimed he made a bold decision—he switched off his phone.

He added that three months later, news broke that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had arrested some presidency officials for stealing N426m from an ethical leadership training fund.

Reflecting on the ordeal, he emphasised the importance of strong moral values.

“Only your values can help you turn down corrupt tendencies,” he warned.

Durotoye also revealed details about his time serving under the Tinubu administration as Special Assistant to the President.

“I did not collect an official car, I did not collect a house, and I did not collect a salary for serving.

“It was difficult to get my letter out because, according to somebody in government, my refusal to collect those things would make it difficult to pin me to corruption,” he stated.

Despite the challenges, he said he encountered like-minded individuals in government who shared his commitment to integrity.

“When we have the right values, there won’t be corruption in this land,” he concluded.

A former presidential candidate of the now-defunct Alliance for New Nigeria, ANN, Fela Durotoye, has claimed he turned down a chance to siphon N5bn in a fraudulent government deal.

According to him, this came amid serious pressure from a government official, who worked in a previous administration and claimed to be a pastor.

Durotoye stated this while speaking at the biannual conference of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, in Abuja, on Tuesday.

According to him, the official approached him with a lucrative training contract, and claimed he (Durotoye) had already been picked for the job.

He was informed the programme would involve trainings across all 774 local government areas in Nigeria within eight weeks.

Durotoye’s team went ahead to prepare an invoice, calculating a price of N1.3bn for the training.

“A few years ago, I’ll not say how long, but it’s not this administration, it’s not last administration it’s a while ago let me leave it like that,” Durotoye said.

He added: “I got a phone call and it happened to be a Man of God from Abuja who called me to say Fela, there’s an opportunity that I want you to explore, in fact let me be clear with you, you have already gotten it.

“But they said the amount I was asking for was too small. They promised to add N700m to make it N2bn. Then they asked me to submit an invoice for N5b.

“The man assured me he wasn’t ripping off Nigeria.

“He said he had served the country and deserved compensation. When I reminded him that the blessings of God make one rich and add no sorrow, he fired back, saying, ‘There is no sorrow in this one. You have been doing well for Nigeria. It is time for Nigeria to do well for you.’”

As pressure mounted, Durotoye revealed he switched off his phone.

Durotoye said three months after the conversations, some officials in the presidency were arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for stealing N426m from an ethical leadership training fund.

Durotoye also disclosed that he did not earn a salary while serving under the President Bola Tinubu administration as Special Assistant to the President.

“I did not collect an official car, I did not collect a house, and I did not collect a salary for serving.

“It was difficult to get my letter out because, according to somebody in government, my refusal to collect those things would make it difficult to pin me to corruption,” he said.