The trial of former Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, and his former Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu, over the alleged diversion of N5.78 billion belonging to the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), resumed on Monday before the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin.

Ahmed and Banu are being prosecuted by the Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on charges bordering on the alleged diversion of SUBEB funds.

At the resumed hearing, the sixth prosecution witness (PW6), Stanley Ujilibo, an EFCC operative, continued his cross-examination before Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar.

Ujilibo had earlier testified on June 17, 2026, that the former governor approved a request to obtain a N1 billion loan from the state's SUBEB counterpart fund to offset workers' salaries following a request by the then Commissioner for Finance, Ademola Banu. He maintained that the approval was contrary to the statutory purpose of the SUBEB funds.

During Monday's proceedings, while responding to questions from counsel to the first defendant, Kamaldeen Ajibade (SAN), the witness stated that the 2013, 2014 and 2015 SUBEB intervention projects were solely the responsibility of the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board and were executed under the supervision of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Abuja.

He stressed that the intervention projects were not projects of the Kwara State Government.

The witness also disclosed that the petition which triggered the EFCC investigation and subsequent prosecution originated from the then Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr Ayoola Idowu.

When asked whether the former DPP benefitted from the alleged N1 billion loan obtained from the SUBEB fund, Ujilibo said he could not confirm whether Idowu benefited, noting that he was a civil servant at the time.

Responding to questions from counsel to the second defendant, Gboyega Oyewole (SAN), the EFCC witness confirmed that although Banu was neither a member of the SUBEB Board nor a signatory to its bank accounts, he signed documents requesting the release of SUBEB funds as well as documents seeking the N1 billion loan from the board's counterpart fund.

He added that the relevant documents had already been tendered as exhibits before the court.

Following the conclusion of the witness's cross-examination, the prosecution counsel, Adebisi Adeniyi, from the chambers of Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), informed the court that the next prosecution witness, a banker, was unavailable because he was testifying in another court.

The prosecution subsequently requested an adjournment, which was granted without objection.

Justice Mahmud Abdulgafar thereafter discharged the sixth prosecution witness and adjourned the case until November 9, 2026, for the continuation of the trial.