The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has recovered N7.5 million unused grant from 11 lecturers of the Kaduna Polytechnic.
The recovered funds were part of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) grant released to the school between 2010 and 2017 for staff capacity development through local and international training.
But while investigating the utilization of TETFUND grants by its North West Zonal office, the ICPC found that 11 lecturers failed to attend their training after receiving money.
The training programmes were scheduled to hold in Nigeria and three other countries, including the United States of America, Greece, and United Arab Emirates.
Some of the lecturers collected as much as N1.39 million while others collected between N149, 000 and N1, 337,000 under the Academic Staff Training and Development Project.
However, while handing over the recovered funds to the Kadpoly Bursar, Garba Nabayi, the Acting Chairman of the ICPC, Musa Abubakar, said the commission would ensure tertiary institutions in the country stop the misuse of grants.
Mr. Abubakar stated that the investigation of the utilization of TETFUND grants was being carried out in 27 other tertiary institutions in the North-West geopolitical zone to make sure grants were properly used, adding that those found wanting would be prosecuted.
“Carting away of public funds is one of the things ICPC is fighting. Non-utilization of the funds given to lecturers is a crime and lecturers as role models, are to show good behavioural conduct to their students,” said the ICPC boss.
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“Beneficiaries of such grant must ensure they go for the training because ICPC will not only recover such funds but will prosecute anybody found culpable.”
With time, he said the exercise would spread to institutions in other geopolitical zones in the country.
Mr. Nabayi, who received 11 bank drafts for each defaulting lecturer on behalf of the institution, commended the ICPC for the prompt intervention that has led to the recovery of the money.
He asked the commission to spread its investigation to other activities of tertiary institutions, especially the execution of capital projects.
