THE Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) have accused former governor of Kebbi State, Alhaji Muhammadu Adamu Aliero, of using non-existing company to siphon the state funds estimated at about N11 Million while in office.

The former Governor, now a Senator was a two-term governor of the state. The commission has subsequently slammed a criminal two-count charge on him before the high court of Kebbi State.

The commission had sought the leave of the court to prefer a charge against him under Section 185 (B) of the Criminal Procedure Code, while the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) would appoint a judge for the trial since the investigation started while he was in office.

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The commission’s act requires the chief justice to appoint an independent investigator to handle alleged corruption cases against sitting governors and has to okay the trial of the sitting governors indicted for corruption when they are out of office.

The first count read: “That you, Senator Muhammadu Adamu Aliero, Governor of Kebbi State, in October, 2005 or thereabout at Birnin Kebbi, being the executive governor of Kebbi State, conferred corrupt advantage upon yourself by procuring P.P Madus Nigeria Limited to supply to secondary schools in Kebbi State chickens from your farm, Labana Poultry Limited, to the tune of N11,754,160 (Eleven million, seven hundred and fifty four thousand, one hundred and sixty Naira) and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.

The second count read: “That you, Senator Muhammadu Adamu Aliero, governor of Kebbi State, in October, 2005 or thereabout at Birnin Kebbi, being the executive governor of Kebbi State, held an indirect interest in a contract for the supply of chickens to secondary schools in Kebbi State by procuring P.P Madus Nigeria Limited to supply from your farm, Labana Poultry Limited, the said chickens to secondary schools in Kebbi State, to the tune of N11,754,160 (Eleven million, seven hundred and fifty four thousand, one hundred and sixty naira) and you thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 12 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.

The charge with no KB/HC/14C/08, a copy of which the Nigerian Tribune has seen, was dated 7th October, 2008 and filed by O.G Iwuagwu, a lawyer with the commission.

In the proof of evidence attached to the charge, the commission listed seven witnesses against him, including two investigative officers of the commission, a contractor, Paul Ifeanyichukwu Madukaife; former Kebbi State Commissioner of Finance, Samaila Salihu; former Commissioner for Education, Dr. Abubakar Abdullahi Bagudo; a Director in the Education Ministry, Attahiru Zagga and Manager of the Birnin Kebbi branch of a bank.

In the proof of evidence, the commission stated that one of its officers, Mohammed Ali, “will testify that his team of investigators discovered that the accused person, who owns a farm, Labana Poultry Limited, procured P.P Madus Nigeria Limited Company, to supply from his farm chickens to secondary schools under the different boards of the Ministry of Education at the cost of N11,754,160.

“He equally will state that investigation revealed that P. P. Madus Nigeria Limited Company as at the time the accused person awarded the contract for the supply of chickens was not a registered contractor with the Kebbi State Tenders Board and was not into the business of farming, nor does it own a farm of its own but that the company was just a middle man procured to act between the farm, the accused person and the Kebbi State Government.”