EFCC files fresh 16-count charge against Yahaya Bello over N110bn fraud

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The Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, has filed charges against Yahaya Bello, former governor of Kogi State.

The fresh 16-charge against the former governor include criminal breach of trust and misappropriation of public funds amounting to N110,446,470,089.

The charges were filed on Wednesday before a Federal High Court in Abuja, with two other co-defendants, Abdulsalami Hudu and Umar Oricha, both officials of the Kogi State government.

The charges alleged that Bello and his co-defendants used state treasury funds to acquire numerous properties both within Nigeria and abroad, including high-end locations in Abuja and Dubai.

Indeed, the charges reads thus:

Count 1- Bello, Oricha, and Hudu are accused of conspiring in 2016 to illegally mismanage N110,446,470,089 from the Kogi State treasury, breaching their trust.

Count 2- The trio allegedly used N950 million in 2023 to purchase a property located at No: 35 Danube Street, Maitama District, Abuja.

Count 3- In 2021, they are said to have spent N100 million on acquiring a property at No: 1160 Cadastral Zone CO3, Gwarimpa I District, Abuja.

Count 4- The defendants are accused of using N920 million in 2020 to buy a property at No: 2 Justice Chukwudifu Oputa Street, Asokoro, Abuja.

Count 5- In 2022, the defendants allegedly used N170 million to acquire a property at Block D, Manzini Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja.

Count 6- They are also accused of using N100 million in 2018 to buy a property at No: 1773 Guzape District, Abuja.

Count 7- The defendants allegedly spent N100 million in 2020 to purchase a property at No: A02/176 Block 488B, Lome Street, Wuse 1, Abuja.

Count 8- In 2020, they allegedly used N66 million to acquire a property at No: 739 Aminu Kano Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja, located at No. 13 Citiscape-Sharriff Plaza.

Count 9- The defendants are accused of using N550 million in 2020 to purchase a property located at No: 2934 A Cadastral Zone A06, Maitama District, Abuja, also known as No. 1 Ikogosi Spring Close.

Count 10- In 2021, they allegedly spent N650 million on a property at No: 1058, measuring 1450.77 square metres, in Cadastral Zone A08, Wuse 2, also known as No. 2 Durban Street, Abuja.

Count 11- The trio allegedly used 5,698,888 Dirhams in 2022 to acquire a property located in Dubai’s Burj Khalifa district at Sky View Building No. 401, Floor 4.

Count 12- They allegedly spent N60 million in 2016 to purchase a property at Block 18 (337), Flat B, Gwelo Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja.

Count 13- In 2017, the defendants are accused of using N310,443,450 to renovate a property at No: 9 Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja.

Count 14- They allegedly transferred $570,330 to an account with TD Bank in the United States in 2021.

Count 15- In 2021, the defendants are also accused of transferring $556,265 to the same TD Bank account in the United States.

Count 16- Yahaya Bello alone is accused of controlling N677,848,000, unlawfully obtained from Bespoque Business Solutions Limited, between 2017 and 2018 in Abuja.

Former Governor Bello is already facing a 19-count charge filed by the EFCC at the Federal High Court in Abuja. However, these new charges further intensify legal scrutiny on his activities during his time as governor of Kogi State.

The Federal Government has approved the increase of Corps Members’ monthly allowance to ₦77,000 with effect from July 2024.

In a statement on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Caroline Embu, said the increment was in line with the enactment of the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024.

Embu quoted a letter from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, dated September 25, 2024 and signed by the Chairman, Ekpo Nta.

“Prior to this, the Director General, NYSC Brigadier General YD Ahmed, had paid an advocacy visit to the Chairman in which he solicited for a robust welfare package for Corps Members.

“The NYSC Boss is thankful to the Federal Government for the timely gesture and is optimistic that it will not only bring much needed succour to the Corps Members, but also boost their morale and motivate them to do even more, in their service to the nation,” Embu said.

Before this increase, the monthly allowance for Corps Members was ₦33,000.

In 2020, the NYSC increased the allowances of corps members from ₦19,800 to ₦33,000, months after a new minimum wage bill of ₦30,000 was signed.

Late July, President Bola Tinubu signed the minimum wage bill into law, ending months of deliberations between government authorities, labour unions, and the private sector.

He signed it at the State House in Abuja days after the National Assembly National had passed the Minimum Wage Act, 2019 to increase the National Minimum Wage from ₦30,000 to ₦70,000.