The Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) re-arraigned former Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed and his Finance Commissioner, Ademola Banu, on Monday, October 21, 2024.
The pair is facing a 14-count amended charge concerning the alleged misappropriation and mismanagement of public funds amounting to a staggering N5.78 billion. This legal proceeding took place before Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar at the Kwara State High Court in Ilorin.
The re-arraignment comes on the heels of a judicial reshuffle, which saw the former trial judge, Justice Evelyn Anyadike, transferred to another division. Ahmed and Banu were initially arraigned on April 29, 2024, on a 12-count charge, to which they pleaded not guilty. However, due to the transfer of Judge Anyadike, the case must now commence anew.
Notably, while all fourteen counts implicate the former governor, Banu was not mentioned in count 7, which specifically accused Ahmed of failing to fill out an asset declaration form provided by EFCC officers upon his arrest, in violation of Section 27(3)(c) of the EFCC Act No. 1 of 2004.
Among the allegations against Ahmed is the misappropriation of an aggregate sum of N1,610,730,500.00, which was intended for state security and administration. Instead, he allegedly chartered private jets through Travel Messengers Limited, contravening Section 22(5) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
The charges detail a conspiracy to misappropriate funds designated for critical public services, including teachers’ salaries and state infrastructure. Count one of the charges states, “That you, ABDULFATAH AHMED (while being the Governor of Kwara State) and ADEMOLA BANU (while being the Commissioner of Finance of Kwara State), on or about 14 January, 2015, in Ilorin, did illegally spend the sum of N1,000,000,000.00 (One Billion Naira) to pay salaries of civil servants in Kwara State which sum was originally domiciled in the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) Matching Grant account…”
In another charge, count four asserts, “That you, ABDULFATAH AHMED and ADEMOLA BANU, between 25th July, 2016 and 7th September, 2016 in llorin, committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the sum of N990,545,883.64 when you dishonestly transferred the said sum from the Kwara SUBEB Matching Grant account into Polaris Bank for the repayment of loan facilities granted to the Kwara State Government…”
As proceedings commenced at 9:00 AM, EFCC counsel Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, urged the court to accept the new charges, to which the defendants’ lead counsel, Kamaldeen Ajibade, SAN, and Gboyega Oyewole, SAN, did not object. Consequently, Justice Abdulgafar permitted the reading of the charges to the defendants, who pleaded not guilty.
Following the reading, the defense sought bail for the defendants, emphasizing that the case had been ongoing since 2019 and that the defendants had complied with previous bail conditions. The court granted bail to both Ahmed and Banu, setting the amount at N100 million each, with two sureties required—one of whom must be a serving or retired permanent secretary.
The case has been adjourned until December 4-5, 2024, marking the next phase in this high-profile legal battle. As the trial approaches, the implications of these charges continue to resonate throughout the political landscape of Kwara State.
