The American International School of Abuja has requested the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to provide authentic banking details for the refund of fees paid for the children of Yahaya Bello, the immediate-past governor of Kogi state.
Allegedly, Bello paid $720,000 in advance as fees for five of his children from the coffers of the Kogi State Government. The children are in Grade Levels 2 to 8 at the school.
On April 17, EFCC operatives attempted to arrest Bello over an alleged N80.2 billion fraud while laying siege on his residence in Abuja. However, Usman Ododo, governor of Kogi, arrived and reportedly whisked Bello away.
In a letter addressed to the Lagos Zonal Commander of the EFCC, the school stated that $845,852 has been paid in tuition since September 7, 2021, to date. AISA mentioned that the sum to be refunded is $760,910 after deducting educational services already rendered.
The letter reads, “Please forward to us an official written request, with the authentic banking details of the EFCC, for the refund of the above-mentioned funds as previously indicated as part of your investigation into the alleged money laundering activities by the Bello family.”
The school added, “Since September 7, 2021, to date, $845,852.84 in tuition and other fees have been deposited into our bank account. We have calculated the net amount to be transferred and refunded to the State, after deducting the educational services rendered as $760,910.84.
No further additional fees are expected in respect of tuition as the students’ fees have now been settled until they graduate from AISA.”
AISA stated that it would draw the attention of the anti-graft agency if there were any further deposits by the Bello family.
In a statement signed by Greg Hughes, AISA also mentioned that “Ali Bello contacted the school on Friday, August 13, 2021, requesting to pay the family school fees in advance until the students graduate from High School”.
The Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, revealed that the former governor transferred $720,000 from the government’s coffers to a bureau de change before leaving office to pay in advance for his child’s school fee.
He disclosed this during an interview with journalists in Abuja, stating, “A sitting governor, because he knows he is going, moved money directly from government to bureau de change, used it to pay the child’s school fee in advance, $720,000 in advance, in anticipation that he was going to leave the Government House.
In a poor state like Kogi, and you want me to close my eyes to that under the guise of ‘I’m being used.’ Being used by who at this stage of my life?”
