Hauwau Abdulkarim, the current Provost of the Federal College of Education (Technical) in Zamfara State, and Abdullahi Boyi, a lecturer at the Sokoto State College of Education, have been arraigned with alleged certificate forgery.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has accused both individuals of fabricating an appointment letter, which they subsequently used to apply for the Provost position at the college.
Additionally, they are charged with providing false information to ICPC officials during the investigation, an act that violates Section 25(1)(a) and is punishable under Section 25(ii)(b) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.
A statement issued on Sunday by the commission’s spokesperson, Demola Bakare, indicated that the defendants have entered a plea of not guilty to the six charges brought against them.
Count one of the charges reads, “That you Hauwa’u Gimbiya Mukhtar Abdulkarim (f) and Abdullah Boyi (m) sometimes in the year 2023 or thereabout, at Sokoto, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired to do an illegal act to wit: forgery of a letter of “Notification for Appointment” to the Post of Chief Lecturer on COMPCASS 14 with effect from January 1, 2017, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 59(1) and punishable under section 60(2) of the Sokoto State Penal Code Law,2019.”
Bakare said the defendants’ counsels, Dr Muhammad Aliyu and Mr M.S. Diri, respectively, moved for applications for bail on behalf of their clients.
“They requested the court to consider reasonable terms for bail citing the defendants’ established positions and cooperation during the investigation,” adding that the ICPC’s counsel, Mr Suleiman Ahmad, did not oppose the bail applications.
After considering the applications, he said the trial judge, Justice Muhammad Sambo, granted bail under specific conditions designed to ensure the defendants’ continued presence throughout the trial proceedings.
“The bail conditions require each defendant to provide two sureties who are permanent residents of Sokoto State, with each surety signing a bond of ₦1,000,000.
“Following the granting of bail, the ICPC prosecutor requested a date for trial to commence, emphasizing the commission’s preparedness to present witnesses and evidence in support of the charges.
“Justice Sambo adjourned the matter to November 21, 2024, when the hearing is set to begin,” he said.
