Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday, Dec. 4, called a witness, Abubakar Hassan, to testify in the trial of the immediate past Governor of Kwara State, Abdulfatah Ahmed.
Ahmed and former Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu, are currently standing trial for the alleged theft and mismanagement of Kwara State funds.
Among other things, the duo were accused of conspiring to steal money meant for the payment of teachers’ salaries working with the State Universal Basic Education Board.
EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, disclosed this in a statement, saying the trial has resumed.
He said the former governor and his commissioner were arraigned in October 2024, and pleaded not guilty to the charges.
At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, the EFCC presented its first witness, Abubakar Hassan, an assistant director of finance, Universal Basic Education Commission.
While being led in evidence by counsel to the EFCC, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), Hassan told the court that the Kwara 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.
According to him, “The Matching Grant Funds from the Universal Basic Education Commission are meant to provide certain infrastructural facilities for both students of primary and junior secondary schools. Such facilities include the construction of buildings for primary schools, provision of laboratories for students, construction of toilets, provision of water and sanitation, and cultural education.”
Hassan stated that the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) prepared and submitted an action plan for 2013 which was defended and received approval to execute certain contracts in compliance with the action plan.
“The Commission made lodgment for 2013, 2014 and 2015. Kwara State got matching grant of about N2billion for 2013, N876million was released for 2014 while they got N982million in 2015, totaling about N5billion,” the witnessed said.
He revealed that, “Implementation of 2013 Action Plan had already commenced, contractors were already being mobilised to work at the site but surprisingly, during our project monitoring exercise, we discovered that the monies meant for the project (2013) had been diverted by the Kwara SUBEB. We discovered that about N2 billion was diverted.”
Following this discovery, the witness said that the report of the project monitoring committee was sent to the Kwara SUBEB, asking them to comply with recommendations of the committee, but there was no response.
Hence, the Commission wrote to the banks to return 2014 and 2015 funds paid to the state. He said there were no activities for 2016, 2017, and 2018 due to the failure of the state to comply with UBEC’s earlier recommendations about the diverted funds.
Hassan further stated that the responsibility of spending UBEC grants rested solely on SUBEB while the State Governor or anyone outside SUBEB has no dealing, directly or indirectly, in spending the fund.
The trial judge, Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar, adjourned further hearing on the case till February 17, 2025.
