Former Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed and his Finance Commissioner Ademola Banu were arraigned yesterday at the State High Court in Ilorin, the state capital, for alleged stealing and mismanagement of N5.78 billion.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had arraigned the duo in October for allegedly stealing public funds meant for the payment of teachers’ salaries at the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (UBEC) as well as to provide security and other infrastructural facilities across the state.
The duo pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to them.
They were admitted to bail, and the case was adjourned for trial.
At the resumed hearing of the case yesterday, the EFCC presented its first witness (PW1), Abubakar Hassan, an Assistant Director of Finance at UBEC.
Led in evidence by counsel to the EFCC, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), Hassan told the court that the state government misappropriated about N5 billion meant to execute projects at primary and junior secondary schools between 2013 and 2015, when Abdulfatah Ahmed was governor.
“The matching grant fund from UBEC is meant to provide certain infrastructural facilities for both students of primary and junior secondary schools. Such facilities include the construction of primary schools, provision of laboratories for students, construction of toilets, provision of water and sanitation and cultural education,” he said.
Explaining the objectives of the UBEC when it was established in 2004, Hassan said: “UBEC law provides that the Chairman of State Universal Basic Education Board, its Executive Secretary, and the Director of Finance are signatories to Matching Grants Account. The Matching Grants Account is opened with any commercial bank or the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).”
The witness explained that the state has to prepare action plans (budgets), defend the projects, and get approval before it can access grants from UBEC.
According to him, the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) prepared and submitted an action plan for 2013, which he said was defended and approved for the execution of certain contracts in compliance with the action plan.
Hassan added: “The commission made lodgment for 2013, 2014, and 2015. Kwara State got Matching Grant of about N2 billion for 2013, N876 million was released for 2014, while they got N982 million in 2015, totaling about N5 billion.”
Recalling what transpired in 2013, the witness added: “The implementation of 2013 Action Plan had already commenced, contractors were already been mobilised to work at the site. But surprisingly, during our project monitoring exercise, we discovered that the funds meant for the project (2013) had been diverted by the Kwara SUBEB. We discovered that about N2 billion was diverted.”
Following this discovery, Hassan said the report of the project monitoring committee was sent to the Kwara SUBEB, asking for compliance with the committee’s recommendations, but without a response.
The witness said this prompted the commission to write to the banks to return the 2014 and 2015 funds paid to the state.
According to him, there were no activities for 2016, 2017, and 2018 due to the failure of the state to comply with its earlier recommendations about the diverted funds.
Hassan also explained that the responsibility of spending UBEC grants rested solely with the SUBEB while the governor or anyone outside SUBEB has no dealing, directly or indirectly, in spending the fund.
Presiding judge, Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar, adjourned continuation of hearing on the case till February 17, 2025.
