Yahaya Bello

On 14 September 2020, Bello was among a list of politicians placed on visa ban by the United States Department of State for undermining democracy in Nigeria.[18][19] While activists praised the decision and called on other developed nations to impose similar bans, Bello accused the United States of partisanship and claimed the 2019 Kogi State gubernatorial election was mostly peaceful and fair.[20][21] Despite his claims, the election had significant reports of violence and fraud along with claims that Bello incited the violence with a 'ta-ta-ta-ta' chant that imitated the sound of gunfire.[4][22]

In 2020, Bello repeated the 'ta-ta-ta-ta' gunfire chant in Akure, Ondo State while addressing a rally for Rotimi Akeredolu's re-election campaign.[23] The chant was condemned by the PDP who then accused Bello of organizing thugs to intimidate Ondo voters.[24] Bello denied the claim and accused the PDP of spreading misinformation.[25]

At various points during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bello either falsely claimed the virus was 'an artificial creation' or simply denied the virus' existence while his state government suppressed testing and fought with the NCDC to keep case numbers artificially low.[26][27] Bello also refused to wear a mask at public events, including after a Governors' meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari and at the funeral for Tolulope Arotile.[28] At memorial prayers for Kogi State Chief Judge Nasir Ajanah, who died of COVID-19 on June 28, 2020, Bello falsely claimed that Ajanah had not died of COVID-19 and said "whether medical experts and scientists, believe it or not, COVID-19 is out to shorten the lifestyle of the people, it is a disease propagated by force for Nigerians to accept."[29]

In October 2020, Bello said that he had rejected a ₦1.1 billion support fund for Kogi State from the World Bank because of his belief that COVID-19 is a “glorified malaria”. He also said “I rejected the World Bank fund because I do not believe in COVID-19. Even the five cases reported in Kogi State is an NCDC creation." This claim was despite his admission that Kogi State had already received ₦1 billion from the Federal Government for COVID-19 recovery.[30]

In his 2020 New Year's Eve address, Bello dismissed the rising second wave of COVID in Nigeria, saying "we remain determined as a government not to respond to the highly controversial second wave with mass hysteria" and claimed that Kogi was "coronavirus-free.[31]" This statement was because Kogi State still was not conducting tests and therefore not finding cases.

Bello opposes vaccinations, contrary to the scientific consensus that vaccines are safe and effective. During the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations, Bello falsely claimed that vaccine makers “want to...introduce the disease that will kill you, God forbid” and refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine.[32][33] These comments were shown as an example of purposeful misinformation around vaccines and led to widespread condemnation, including by the Nigeria Governors' Forum.[34]

In April 2021, Bello claimed to have received an honorary professorship in "Humanitarian services, Human Resources Management, Peace Building" from the St Thomas-a-Becket University according to Kogi State Commissioner for Information Kingsley Fanwo.[35] However, investigation by Sahara Reporters found that the St Thomas-a-Becket University neither awards recognised UK degrees nor has any courses in humanitarian services, human resources management, and/or peace building.[36]

In his first few days as Governor, Bello approved the spending of a total of ₦260 million in security funds in multiple installments. On his first day (January 27, 2016), Permanent Secretary in the Government House Ilemona John requested approval for spending ₦15 million in security funds, and Bello approved it two days later; on February 2, John requested approval for another ₦20 million in security funds, and Bello approved it on the same day. On February 3, John again requested approval for spending, asking for ₦5 million as the security fund "has just been exhausted" with Bello approving it on the same day. Later on February 3, John asked for ₦20 million to "replenish" the fund, and Bello granted immediate approval. Finally, on February 8, John requested ₦100 million twice, with Bello immediately approving the spending.

Bello also approved over ₦148 million for the furnishing and renovating the Governor's office at the Government House. On 1 February 2016, John requested approval for ₦99,983,994 for the renovation, with Bello immediately approving the spending. The next month, on 4 March, John again requested approval for spending, asking for ₦48,593,250 to pay "for additional works on the renovation/furnishing and maintenance of the governor’s office at Kogi Government House." Bello's administration also awarded Maj Global Construction Company a ₦1.4 billion contract for the "Remodelling and Rehabilitation of Government House Structures;" in 2020, Maj Global Construction Company Managing Director Michel Abboud claimed that the Bello administration had not paid ₦726 million despite full completion.[37][38]

Kogi State Commissioner for Information Kingsley Fanwo claimed the large and rapid spending was needed due to insecurity in Kogi State. In contrast, the large renovation costs were required to make the Government House habitable. Fanwo later said, "the Governor Yahaya Bello administration is contractually committed to fighting corruption and enthroning transparency in the polity."[39] In 2020, Fanwo denied that Kogi State owed Maj Global Construction Company any more than ₦100 million.

Soon after entering the gubernatorial office in 2016, Bello and his administration were accused of corruption by the socio-political groups Kogi in Action and Egalitarian Mission for Africa. The groups claimed to have sent information to the EFCC on alleged “fictitious withdrawals and evidence of contracts inflation” by the Bello administration in 2016. Kogi in Action spokesman Majeed Abdullahi said that “EMA furnished the EFCC with details of executive recklessness on the part of the governor and his agents” and expressed concern over the agency's alleged inaction.[40]

In February 2021, scrutiny of the Kogi State Budget 2021 uncovered scores of mentions of COVID-19, a virus Bello falsely claimed did not exist and refused to combat with countermeasures. Not only did the budget mention COVID-19, but it also allocated billions of naira to various COVID-19 countermeasures from "E-health COVID-19 response" to "e-learning programme (COVID-19 palliative for students in JSS 3 and SSS 3)" along with ₦9.7 billion allocated for simply "COVID-19." Fanwo did not return requests for comment on the budget anomalies as some accused Bello's administration of corruption via the "COVID-19" allocations.[41] In total, at least ₦16.8 billion was allocated to fund COVID-19 countermeasures.[42] Later investigation by the Premium Times showed over ₦2.6 billion was allocated for agriculture-related COVID mitigation programs, however, interviewed farmers claimed that no assistance was offered to them by the state government. Babaniyi Asorose, a farmer and Lokoja coordinator of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria, said that Lokoja seed and fertiliser distribution was discontinued the day after federal Minister of Agriculture Sabo Nanono opened the Kogi State distribution scheme; the warehouse was later raided of all supplies in the midst of the End SARS protests. Asorose, along with other farmers, also denied receiving any state government support and said that much of the supplies that were genuinely distributed were given to "political farmers," without true farms. When submitted with a Freedom of information request, Commissioner for Agriculture David Apeh stated that no government assistance was given to farmers because none of the budgeted money had been spent; when told by the reporter that the audited report indicated that the money had been spent, Apeh deflected saying "it was not from my own office." Commissioner for Finance Asiru Idris, who signed the report, and Bello's Chief Press Secretary Onogwu Mohammed did not respond to requests for comment.[42]

Later in February 2021, the Anti-Corruption Network, a Kogi-based group that had accused Bello of corruption several previous times, released a new report accusing Bello of laundering billions of naira in public funds; the organization then filed a EFCC petition against the governor on March 1. According to former PDP Senator Dino Melaye, the petition was also submitted to the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, United States embassy, British High Commission, and Transparency International. The report detailed various forms of accused corruption in the 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 Kogi State Government Expenditures, including (but not limited to) awarding state contracts to non-legal persons, irregularities in awarding contracts, conflicts of interest in awarding contracts, awarding contracts without due process, and money laundering. The report sparked fresh calls for an EFCC investigation into Bello, including by Kogi anti-corruption groups and the Peoples Democratic Party.[43][44] The Bello administration responded by calling the allegations politically motivated and claiming the PDP was fearful of Bello's rising profile.[45] On March 30, the EFCC announced an investigation into the Anti-Corruption Network's fraud allegation.[46] However, in July 2021, the Anti-Corruption Network claimed that the EFCC had not made progress on the announced investigation into Bello and threatened to take legal action if the commission did not act promptly.[47]

On 26 March 2021, Premium Times reported that the Kogi State government had spent over ₦90 million on a COVID tracking software that only cost ₦300,000. Reporting revealed that despite the Bello administration's lack of anti-COVID measures, financial records showed that the state government had bought a year of COVID-19 risk assessment software for ₦90,720,000 in March 2020. A reporter posing as a government official who wanted create a similar app in a different state contacted Telnet Technology Limited, the technology company awarded the Kogi project, who stated a similar project would cost only ₦300,000 for one year. Fanwo claimed the project cost less than a million naira but refused to explain why the state financial report showed over ₦90 million being paid.[48] The Premium Times reporting sparked even further calls for investigation, with the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) asking President Buhari to “direct the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami, SAN and appropriate anti-corruption agencies to investigate alleged misuse of the N4.5 billion donations, loans and support the Kogi State government obtained from the Federal Government, including N90,720,000 reportedly spent on software to track COVID-19 cases in the state.[49]

On 31 August 2021, the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court froze the "Kogi State Salary Bailout" Sterling Bank fixed account after an application from the EFCC. The commission's affidavit stated that it had "credible and direct intelligence" that the account was illegally filled with ₦20 billion from a state government loan account on July 25, 2019, and had not been used to pay civil servant salaries. According to the EFCC, in the two years between the account creation and the court date, ₦666,666,666.64 was removed from the account with the commission claiming to be attempting to trace those funds as they were "not used for the payment of the salary." Judge Tijjani Ringim, who granted the commission's motion to freeze the account, stated that the freeze would remain in place until December 1 pending the EFCC investigation and possible prosecution.[50]

In response, Sterling claimed that Kogi State had no fixed account in their bank and said that the account mentioned by the EFCC is an internal digit number the bank uses to manage Kogi State accounts; however, Sterling admitted that there was a similarly numbered fixed account that the bank did not operate. The Bello administration organized a press conference where Fanwo also claimed that the state government did not have any fixed accounts in Sterling Bank and that the three state government accounts in Sterling Bank only held ₦46 million. Fanwo also accused the EFCC of misleading the judiciary and the public before threatening to sue the commission and media for reporting on the court proceedings.[51] Bello also personally denied the accusations, calling the case a "misrepresentation of facts" along with claiming that no Kogi state account was frozen and that "the officials of the EFCC" could have misled the commission.[52][53] The EFCC told the Kogi state government to go to court if it contested their findings. Meanwhile, human rights activist Deji Adeyanju said Bello "should be in jail forever" due to corruption and in September 2021, all three of Kogi's senators (Smart Adeyemi, Jibrin Isah, and Yakubu Oseni - all APC) met with EFCC Chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa to advocate for Bello's case.[54][55] Bawa rebuffed the senators' case after explaining why the EFCC is not solely targeting Kogi; analysts claimed the case could be the biggest test for Bawa since his February 2021 appointment.[56]

In November 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria acknowledged the receipt of the Kogi State salary bailout funds of about ₦19.3 billion after the recovery of the funds by the EFCC.[57] Fanwo again denied that the money belonged to the Kogi State Government, calling the EFCC's report "mischievous, false and politically motivated."[58] On December 12, the Kogi State Government sued the EFCC for ₦35 billion in damages over the commission's statements on the issue.[59]