Ede Poly: Reps threaten arrest of rector, bursar over alleged financial irregularities

The House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee has threatened to issue arrest warrants against the Rector of the Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Engineer Sani Yahaya, and the institution’s Bursar, Aishat Shade Adebayo, if they fail to appear before it on Monday, October 19, 2026, over unresolved audit queries, alleged procurement irregularities, and other financial management concerns.

The Chairman of the Committee, Rep. Bamidele Salam, disclosed this on Friday as the committee adopted the report of a technical committee that reviewed submissions made by six tertiary institutions in response to audit queries issued by the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation.

The resolution followed the examination of unresolved issues arising from the Federal Polytechnic, Ede’s 2021 Audit Report, findings recorded during the committee’s South-West oversight exercise, and a petition received by the committee.

The committee expressed displeasure over the repeated failure of the rector and bursar to appear before it despite several invitations, describing their non-appearance as a matter of concern in view of outstanding audit queries and other issues requiring explanation.

The lawmakers warned that unless the rector, bursar, and other concerned officials appear before it on Monday, October 19, 2026, it will invoke the relevant powers of the House of Representatives to arrest them and compel their attendance.

The committee stressed that the officials must appear to respond to the outstanding audit queries, explain the alleged financial irregularities, and provide the documents required for its ongoing investigations.

The committee also disclosed that a visit by its inspection team to the Federal Polytechnic, Ede, revealed very poor project execution, with work done on some projects allegedly not commensurate with the amounts already paid to contractors.

The lawmakers further disclosed that they had received petitions against the management of the institution, alleging various forms of financial irregularities.

The committee noted that the Federal Polytechnic, Ede, had three outstanding queries in the 2021 Audit Report involving an unretired cash advance, the engagement of an external solicitor without the approval of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, and foreign trips undertaken without evidence of approval from the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

The committee also expressed concern over the late submission of the institution’s audited accounts for the 2022, 2023, and 2024 financial years, contrary to extant regulations and statutory requirements.

Regarding the institution’s financial management, during the committee’s oversight visit to the South-West, it observed a significant variance between the approved budget and actual overhead expenditure for 2023. While ₦110.2 million was appropriated for overhead costs, the institution’s audited accounts reflected an actual expenditure of ₦882.5 million, representing an excess expenditure of approximately ₦772 million.

The committee further queried a budgetary slack of approximately ₦268.5 million in personnel expenditure for the same year.

According to the records examined, the approved personnel budget stood at ₦2.862 billion, while actual expenditure was ₦2.593 billion, raising concerns about the adequacy of due diligence in the preparation of the institution’s budget estimates.

Another issue flagged by the committee was the absence of evidence of compliance with the mandatory remittance of one per cent of personnel emoluments to the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) for the period covering 2023 to 2025.

The committee expressed further displeasure over the failure of the institution to make available procurement records relating to capital expenditure and Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) projects despite repeated requests.

The lawmakers described the non-production of the records as a denial of the committee’s access to relevant procurement documents required for effective legislative oversight and accountability.

During a physical inspection of an ongoing lecture theatre construction project at the institution’s permanent site, the committee observed what it described as substandard construction work.

The inspection revealed that the flooring leading to the entrance of the lecture theatre was poorly executed, with the concrete reportedly so weak that it could be broken by hand and foot.

The findings raised further concerns about the quality of project execution and whether the work delivered was commensurate with the funds already paid to the contractors.

Following the inspection, the institution was directed to produce the project’s Bill of Quantities, procurement records, and details of the contractor responsible for the construction for further examination. However, the requested documents were not made available to the committee.

The committee also raised concerns over ₦20.5 million reportedly yet to be credited to the Retirement Savings Accounts of some employees of the institution by Stanbic IBTC Pension and Access Pension.

According to the findings, the delay was attributed to the institution’s inability to provide accurate employee information, including Retirement Savings Account Personal Identification Numbers (RSA PINs), to the pension fund administrators.

The committee observed that the delay could deprive the affected employees of interest and other investment returns that might have accrued to their retirement savings had the funds been credited promptly.

Rep. Salam reiterated the committee’s commitment to ensuring accountability, transparency, and compliance with financial regulations in the management of public funds.

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He stressed that public institutions must be prepared to account for their expenditure, provide requested records, and respond to audit queries raised by the appropriate authorities.

The committee warned that the repeated failure of public officials to honour its invitations, provide relevant documents, or satisfactorily respond to issues raised during legislative investigations would not be treated lightly.

The committee, therefore, maintained that the relevant powers of the House of Representatives would be invoked, including measures to compel the attendance of the rector, bursar, and other concerned officials, should they fail to appear on Monday as directed.

The committee further indicated that the petitions received against the institution’s management would be examined alongside the relevant audit findings and other available records, in accordance with the Nigerian Constitution.