The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has unveiled details of how Usman Kwakwa, a senior staff member of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), allegedly diverted the agency’s funds using his personal company.
ICPC Investigator Bariki Zaknayaba testified before Justice Emeka Nwite of a Federal High Court in Abuja, led by the anti-corruption commission’s lawyer, Osuobeni Akponimisingha. Zaknayaba revealed that the investigation discovered N215 million of REA funds were unlawfully transferred to Bizairabbi General Supply and Co Ltd, a company owned by Kwakwa, between March and June 2023. Additionally, N97 million was paid into Kwakwa’s Zenith Bank account under the pretense of payments for project monitoring exercises.
This misappropriation is part of a larger sum of N1.2 billion allegedly embezzled by several senior workers in the Finance and Account Department of REA, including Abubakar Sambo, the agency’s Director of Finance and Accounts.
Zaknayaba, the first prosecution witness, explained that multiple petitions from non-governmental organizations and the National Assembly led to the investigation. “The head of the Investigation Department assigned the petitions to our team for investigation,” he stated. The investigation team analyzed bank statements and account opening packages from several banks, revealing that significant sums were transferred to accounts associated with Kwakwa and other REA officers.
Payments totaling N215 million were made to Kwakwa’s company, Bizairabbi General Supply and Co Ltd, and his personal Zenith Bank account from March to June 2023, allegedly for project monitoring. However, Zaknayaba noted that there was no formal approval for these payments from the agency’s authority.
The investigator described the proper procedure for such payments, which includes formal approval by the managing director and subsequent processing through the Finance and Account department. He indicated that this procedure was not followed in the case at hand.
During the investigation, Kwakwa and other accounting staff of REA were invited, and Kwakwa’s statement was obtained voluntarily. The ICPC sought to present petitions and bank statements as evidence, but Kwakwa’s counsel, Aliyu Lenu, SAN, objected, arguing that the documents were not properly certified and the witness was not the maker of the bank statements.
Despite the objections, ICPC’s lawyer, Akponimisingha, argued that the documents had entered the public domain and could be tendered as evidence. He cited a previous Supreme Court decision supporting the admissibility of documents recovered during investigations.
Justice Nwite adjourned the case to November 21 for a ruling on the admissibility of the documents and continuation of the trial. Kwakwa, who pleaded not guilty to the charges, was granted bail of N50 million. Other REA staff members, including Sambo and six others, are also facing separate charges in related cases before Justices Nwite, Bolaji Olajuwon, and Nkeonye Maha of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
