The American International School of Abuja (AISA) has contacted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), requesting for an “authentic bank details” where they would refund the upfront payment of Yahaya Bello’s children school fees.
The school said they have calculated and deducted the educational fees for the services that have been rendered to Bello’s children so far and are set to refund the balance to the state account in which the anti-graft agency will provide for them.
The immediate past governor f Kogi state Yahaya Bello is alleged to have made an advance payment of $720,000 in school fees for five of his children from the coffers of the Kogi State Government. The children are said to be in grade levels 2 to 8 at the school.
The EFCC operatives on April 17 laid siege to Yahaya Bello’s residence in Abuja in an attempt to arrest him over an alleged N80.2 billion fraud.
While the operatives were at the house, the current Governor of Kogi, Usman Ododo, arrived at the property and reportedly whisked Bello away. The EFCC have since placed Bello on their watch list.
The development further steered thorough investigations of Bello’s expenditures from the Kogi state treasury account. It was discovered that Bello had withdrawn the sum of $845,852.84 (Eight Hundred and Forty-Five Thousand, Eight Hundred and Fifty-Two US Dollars and eighty-four cents) to settle his children school fees which covers the expenses till their graduation.
The EFCC in a bid to recover the money, asked the school for a refund of the upfront school fees payment.
In a letter addressed to the Lagos zonal commander of the EFCC, the school said the sum of $845,852 had been paid in tuition “since the 7th of September 2021 to date”.
AISA said the sum to be refunded is $760,910 because it had deducted educational services already rendered.
It read: “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,”.
“Since the 7th September 2021 to date, $845,852.84 (Eight Hundred and Forty-Five Thousand, Eight Hundred and Fifty-Two US Dollars and eighty-four cents) in tuition and other fees has 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. (Seven Hundred and Sixty Thousand, Nine Hundred and Ten US Dollars and Eighty-Four cents).
“No further additional fees are expected in respect of tuition as the students’ fees have now been settled until they graduate from ASIA.”
