Yahaya Bello reacts to controversial $720,000 children’s school fees advance payment
The immediate-past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has denied paying $720,000 from the state treasury for his children’s tuition fees.
The chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Olanipekun Olukoyede, on Tuesday, accusedMr Bello of stealing the funds while his administration was coming to an end to pay his children’s education at the American International School, Abuja.
We also reported how the American International School Abuja offered to refund $720,000 paid by Mr Bello for his children’s tuition fees.
The school’s letter, which went viral online on Friday, showed that the former governor paid the money in August 2021, in advance for school terms his children had yet to use.
The letter is part of the exhibits the EFCC filed in support of the N80 billion money laundering charges it instituted against Mr Bello after he left office in January.
But, Mr Bello, who left office as governor on 27 January, said his children’s educational pursuit at the American International School Abuja preceded his ascension to the Kogi State Government House in 2016., a statement from Mr Bello’s media office on Friday said.