Former Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his former Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu, were unable to proceed with their trial on Monday after two prosecution witnesses failed to appear before the Kwara State High Court in Ilorin.
The duo is facing prosecution over the alleged diversion of more than N5.78 billion belonging to the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).
The funds were allegedly used to pay salaries of state civil servants.
During Monday’s proceedings, the court concluded a brief cross-examination of prosecution witness Stanley Ujilibo, whose testimony had continued from the previous hearing.
Following the session, prosecuting counsel Adebisi Adeniyi informed the court that the next two witnesses scheduled to testify were unavoidably absent.
He therefore requested that the matter be adjourned, assuring the court that the witnesses would be available at the next hearing.
The court subsequently adjourned the case to a later date for the continuation of the trial.
However, before the request for adjournment, Ujilibo, while being crossed examined by Kamaldeen Ajibade, SAN, the lead counsel to the first defendant, Ahmed, told the court that he would not know if one Ayoola Idowu, a civil servant who\ petitioned the EFCC about the alleged diversion benefited from the fund as salary payment to him.
Ajibade had queried whether Idowu, as a civil servant benefitted from the fund when it was allegedly used to pay salary of the state’s workers.
Also, the witness when being cross-examined by Gboyega Oyewole, SAN, the counsel for the second defendant, Banu, could not point out a document that shows that the second defendant as the Commissioner for Finance wrote to borrow money from the SUBEB fund.
When asked to go through the exhibits before the court he pointed out a letter written by the second defendant to the first defendant requesting that the state should pay its counterpart fund to the SUBEB fund.
When the second defendant’s counsel said the letter did not talk about borrowing but payment of funds, the witness pointed out another letter from the exhibit which talked about borrowing but which was signed by someone else and not the second defendant.
The request of the prosecution counsel for adjournment was not opposed by the counsel for the first and second defendants and the trial judge, Justice Abdulgafar Mahmoud adjourned the proceeding to November 9th,2026.
