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The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has disclosed that Yahaya Bello, the ex-governor of Kogi State, took out $720,000 from the state’s funds to cover his child’s future school expenses.
Olukoyede claimed during a discussion with media leaders in Abuja that Bello moved the money straight from the state’s accounts to a bureau de change operator, intending to prepay his child’s school fees before leaving office.
Olukoyede emphasised the impropriety of such actions, saying, “A sitting governor, because he knew he was leaving office, moved money directly from the government to bureau de change and used it to pay his child’s school fee in advance.
“Over $720,000 in anticipation that he was going to leave the government house. In a poor state like Kogi, you want me to close my eyes under the guise of ‘I’m being used’. Used by who? At this stage of my life.”
He clarified that he inherited the case file concerning the former governor and did not initiate the investigation against Bello.
In April, EFCC operatives surrounded Bello’s home in Abuja to arrest him for his alleged involvement in an ₦80 billion fraud.
However, Bello was reportedly rescued by Usman Ododo, the governor of Kogi, during his visit to the ex-governor’s residence.
Following this, the EFCC declared Bello wanted, and the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) put him on a watchlist.
The anti-corruption agency accused Bello and others of diverting approximately ₦80.2 billion belonging to the Kogi government.