The trial of former Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his then Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu, resumed on Thursday before Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court in Ilorin.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecutes the duo on allegations of misappropriating approximately ₦5.78 billion, including the diversion of Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) matching grants meant for school infrastructure to pay civil servants' salaries.
During the hearing, the sixth prosecution witness, Stanley Ujilibo, an EFCC investigator, testified that the commission obtained bank statements from Polaris Bank (formerly Skye Bank) and Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) as part of its probe.
Led by prosecution counsel and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Rotimi Jacobs, Ujilibo explained that the EFCC sent letters dated August 1, 2025, to the banks' managing directors requesting the Kwara State Government's account statements.
The banks complied, and the documents were tendered and admitted as exhibits by the court.
Ujilibo also mentioned that a petition from the Kwara State Government triggered further inquiries, leading to correspondence with the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant-General.
However, when the prosecution attempted to tender responses from these entities, the defence team, led by Kamaldeen Ajibade, objected, arguing that the documents had not been properly highlighted for reference.
Justice Abdulgafar subsequently adjourned the matter to February 16, 2026, for continuation of the hearing.
The EFCC alleges that the defendants misused UBEC counterpart funds, intended for basic education facilities across Kwara's 16 local government areas.
A previous witness, former Accountant-General Suleiman Oluwadare Ishola, had testified that ₦1 billion from a 2015 UBEC grant was used to pay salaries and pensions under Ahmed's administration.
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