In a statement issued on Monday, September 15, 2025, Babcock University emphatically refuted the allegations, stating:
👉🏼 No Knowledge of Alleged Group: The University and its Proprietors are unaware of any Church advocacy group called "The Apostles Seventh-Day Adventist advocacy group" within the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which owns the university.
👉🏼 No Misconduct by Professor: Professor Afolarin Olutunde Ojewole, former University Pastor/Associate Vice President for Spiritual Life (until 2018 leave of absence), has never been involved, accused, dismissed, or sanctioned for sexual infidelity or any misconduct.
👉🏼 Transparent Process: The University Governing Council's 2025 Search Committee for appointing the President/Vice-Chancellor operates under high spiritual, ethical, and procedural standards guided by policies of the global Seventh-day Adventist Church.
👉🏼 Not Political or Subject to Lobbying: The appointment is not an election, is not political, and is not subject to lobbying, influence, or compromise.
👉🏼 False Claims: Allegations of a single individual manipulating policy for a particular contestant are false and a product of imagination.
Babcock University warned those behind the publication to cease such actions, reserving the right to seek legal redress for reputational damage caused by malicious statements against the University or its personnel. The university appealed to candidates and supporters to refrain from such tactics, emphasizing the leadership transition process must remain untarnished by falsehood, propaganda, or blackmail.
The statement reaffirmed Babcock University's commitment to its mission of building servant leaders and restated the ongoing President/Vice-Chancellor appointment process is transparent, just, fair, and guided by merit and service. "The University’s legacy of moral integrity, spiritual depth, and academic excellence will never be compromised."
