Adamu Aliyu, a member of the Plateau State House of Assembly

Adamu Aliyu, a serving member of the Plateau State House of Assembly, has surrendered to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) days after being declared wanted over alleged contract fraud.

Mr Aliyu, who represents Jos North-North constituency, appeared at the ICPC headquarters in Abuja on Monday. This followed a Federal High Court order by Justice Emeka Nwite declaring him wanted after investigators said he ignored repeated invitations to answer questions about the alleged scam.

Background of the Allegations

The case stems from a petition by Mohammed Jidda, a businessman, who accused Mr Aliyu of defrauding him under the guise of facilitating an N850 million Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) contract at the University of Jos. According to court documents, the lawmaker allegedly entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mr Jidda, who was to pay N73.6 million as facilitation fees if the contract was awarded.

Investigators allege that Mr Aliyu presented a forged contract award letter from the University of Jos for the construction of an indoor sports hall valued at N500 million. On the strength of the letter, Mr Jidda transferred large sums into two bank accounts provided by the lawmaker — Mr Aliyu’s personal account at Guaranty Trust Bank and another belonging to Imanal Concept Ltd at Zenith Bank.

University Denies Contract

When Mr Jidda approached the University of Jos to begin contract documentation, the institution denied issuing any such award. In a formal confirmation to the ICPC, the school stated that the letter was forged.

Bank records obtained by investigators show that N47.8 million was deposited into Mr Aliyu’s personal account, N22.4 million into Imanal Concept Ltd’s account, and an additional N3.2 million directly to the lawmaker.

Despite several invitations — including messages through the Clerk of the Plateau Assembly and WhatsApp — Mr Aliyu allegedly failed to appear before the ICPC, prompting the agency to seek a warrant. The ICPC also told the court it had credible intelligence suggesting the lawmaker planned to flee Nigeria to evade prosecution.

Lawmaker’s Defence

Speaking to PREMIUM TIMES last week, Mr Aliyu denied the allegations. He said he was unaware of the ICPC summons while on pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. He also claimed he had refunded N45 million of the money to Mr Jidda’s company, Mohiba Investment Ltd, in four separate transfers.

Mr Aliyu further denied forging the contract letter, attributing it to an associate who he said was the facilitator. He insisted his role was limited to passing documents along to Mr Jidda.