By Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
Former Kwara State Accountant General (AG), Mr. Suleiman Ishola, has testified before a High Court sitting in Ilorin that the administration of former Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed actually took the sum of N1bn loan to augment the payment of civil servants and pensioners salaries in the State.
Ishola also added that the fund was not diverted to personal accounts as being insinuated in certain quarters.
The ex-AG, who is also an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) witness, stated this on Friday at the state High Court, Ilorin when being led in evidence by the EFCC Counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN).
Ishola was testifying before Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar in the ongoing trial of former Governor Ahmed and his former Commissioner for Finance, Alhaji Demola Banu, over alleged misappropriation of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) funds.
Ex-Chairman of SUBEB, Alhaji Lanre Daibu had on Thursday this week revealed that the N1 billion loan was used by the then state government to augment salary payment of workers and arrears of pensioners salaries.
Alhaji Daibu also told the court that, the first defendant who is former Governor Ahmed and second defendant who is also the former Commissioner for Finance, Alhaji Banu were not signatories to the SUBEB accounts while the money approved for the payment of workers and pensioners was not paid into any personal account.
Alhaji Ishola said: “As the Accountant General, the Governor must approve all payments before I can go ahead with the payment”.
“In 2014 I was copied with a letter that a sum of one billion Naira would be coming from SUBEB to the Kwara state government salary account for payment of salaries and pensions.
“The Perm Sec. conveyed the directive of the Finance Commissioner to me to pay salaries.
“Ordinarily, the one billion Naira was not enough to pay salaries. We still had a deficit of over N700 million.
“On receipt of warrants and vouchers from various ministries we made payment generally. That is one our duties.”
The case was later adjourned to June 10 and 11, 2025.