A Kwara State High Court presided over by Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar on Wednesday adjourned proceedings in the ongoing trial of the former State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his Finance Commissioner, Ademola Banu, to July 27 for the continuation of the cross-examination of the sixth prosecution witness, Stanley Ujilibo.
The adjournment followed an oral application by counsel to the second defendant, Ibn Mahmud, who informed the court that the lead defense counsel, Gboyega Oyewole, SAN, was indisposed.
Ahmed and Banu are being prosecuted by the Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the alleged diversion of N5.78 billion belonging to the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).
During the session, Ujilibo testified that the former governor approved a request to obtain a N1 billion loan from the state’s SUBEB counterpart fund to pay workers’ salaries.
He explained that the approval followed a formal request by the Commissioner of Finance, which ran contrary to the statutory purpose for which the SUBEB funds were designated.
During cross-examination, Ujilibo, an Assistant Commander of the EFCC, told the court that SUBEB operated under its own governing board and that neither Ahmed nor Banu was a member.
According to the witness, while the former governor was responsible for appointing the SUBEB chairman and other principal officers, he did not serve on the board himself.
Ujilibo added that investigations did not extend to the former governor’s personal bank accounts because the petition before the commission did not link the allegedly diverted funds to any of his private accounts.
He also explained that none of the accounting officers of SUBEB are currently facing trial in connection with the case.
Midway into the proceedings, counsel to the first defendant, Abdulrasaq Gold, SAN, sought an adjournment to enable him to obtain copies of the statement made by Ahmed to the EFCC in Abuja, as well as his asset declaration forms, for the purpose of further cross-examining the witness.
Counsel to the EFCC, Adebisi Adeniyi, opposed the application, arguing that the defense had already had sufficient time to request the documents since the commencement of the trial in 2024.
In his ruling, Justice Abdulgafar declined the application but held that the defense remains at liberty to recall the witness for further cross-examination after obtaining the requested documents.