Acting Provost of the
Federal College of Education, Technical, Gusau, Dr. Bello Ahmed, has been
sentence to five years imprisonment for five years in jail for collecting
illegal allowance from the institution.
The State High Court
In Gusau, Zamfara State sentence Dr. Bello Ahmed to five years imprisonment.
Independent Corrupt
Practices ICPC, in a statement by its Resident Consultant (Media and Events),
Mr. Folu Olamiti, yesterday, in Abuja, said such abuse was punishable under
Section 19 of ICPC Act 2000.
According to the
statement, the law stipulates that, “any public officer who uses his office or
position to gratify or confer any corrupt or unfair advantage upon himself or
associate of the public officer or any public officer shall be guilty of an
offence and shall on conviction be liable to imprisonment for five years
without option of fine.”
Dr. Ahmed was accused
of collecting DTA, between 13 and 16 November 2006, from the college for an
official trip to attend a board meeting of the Joint Admissions and
Matriculation Board, JAMB, while equally collecting an equal amount as DTA from
JAMB, including sitting allowances, all totalling N385,000.00.
The accused, who was
arraigned by ICPC on an eight-count charge bordering on corruption and abuse of
office, pleaded guilty to the offence and asked for leniency.
However, the presiding
Judge, Justice Amaize, said he was not swayed by the plea of allocutus, as the
accused lacked integrity and sentenced Ahmed to five years imprisonment without
an option of fine.
The ICPC warned public
servants to desist from collecting double DTA from their agencies and also
receiving or demanding same in cash or facilities.
The statement partly
read, “Public servants should learn from the conviction of Dr. Shallah Ahmed.
He was accused of having collected DTA from the college for an official trip to
attend a board meeting of the JAMB while also collecting an equal amount as DTA
from JAMB, including sitting allowances; all totalling N385,000.00.”
