13th March, 2025
By Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja
A retired Permanent Secretary at the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Dr. Musa Oladimeji Dasuki has revealed how former governor of the State, Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his finance commissioner, Ademola Banu, diverted the sum of N5.8 billion meant to build schools in the state.
Dasuki who served between 2011 and 2020 revealed this on Wednesday during the continuation of trial of the former Kwara governor over alleged misappropriation of N5.78 billion public funds by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Abdulfatah was arraigned before Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin.
At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, Dasuki who was led in evidence by EFCC counsel Rotimi Jacobs, testified that the Kwara State Government, under the leadership of the first defendant as governor and the second defendant as finance commissioner, requested UBEC funds for the years 2013 and 2014 to pay teachers’ salaries.
According to Dasuki: “The then Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu, who is the second defendant in this case, initially made an oral request for the release of the 2013 UBEC Matching Grant to pay teachers’ salaries. However, we insisted that such a request must be made in writing. Subsequently, the commissioner sent a letter conveying His Excellency’s approval for the release of the funds. As a result, the money was deposited into the state government’s account domiciled with Skye Bank Plc.”
Dasuki further explained that SUBEB initially opposed the request because they knew it would affect ongoing projects. However, they eventually approved the release after receiving assurances from Banu that the funds would be repaid once the state received its allocation from Abuja.
“A letter was written to that effect from the office of the Commissioner for Finance, signed on his behalf, and the money was released immediately upon receiving the letter,” he said.
Despite the assurances, Dasuki stated that the money was never repaid.
“According to the 2013 action plan submitted to UBEC, the funds were intended for the construction of 40 standard classroom blocks with offices, 40 VIP toilets, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) centers in primary and junior secondary schools across the 16 Local Government Areas of Kwara State. However, many of these projects could not be executed because the funds had been diverted,” he said.
He further testified that many contractors protested due to non-payment for completed projects.
During cross-examination by Jimoh Mumini, SAN, counsel to the first defendant, Dasuki confirmed that neither the former governor nor the finance commissioner was a member of SUBEB.
Justice Abdulghafar adjourned the matter til Thursday, March 13, 2025
