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| Adamu Aliyu. |
The lawmaker representing Jos North Constituency in the Plateau State House of Assembly, Honourable Adamu Aliyu, who has been declared wanted by a Federal High Court over an alleged fraudulent Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) contract worth N73.6 million, has accused the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) of misguiding the court by withholding crucial facts in the matter.
Aliyu, through a motion filed at the same court in Abuja on Friday, is requesting an ex parte order to vacate the arrest warrant issued against him by Justice Emeka Nwite. The judge had granted the order following an application from the ICPC concerning the alleged contract fraud on 12 September 2025.
In the case, which has sparked public debate, the court—acting on the ICPC’s application—had declared the Plateau legislator wanted. This followed a petition by businessman Mohammed Jidda to the anti-corruption agency, claiming that Aliyu had promised to assist him in securing an N850 million TETFund contract at the University of Jos, based on a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
Jidda was said to have paid N73.6 million in advance to the lawmaker, of which N52 million was reportedly meant for Imanal Concept Ltd, a company owned by Saad Abubakar, the alleged middleman in the questionable contract.
However, in a new legal development, the embattled lawmaker, through a motion on notice filed by his legal representatives—M.B. Abdullahi and M.M. Auwal of Munir Barau Abdullahi & Co—urged the court to nullify the order declaring him wanted, describing it as “oppressive”, “overreaching”, and “unnecessary”.
In a supporting affidavit, Aliyu stated that before the court's declaration, he had written to the ICPC—days before the Commission filed its ex parte motion—providing clarification on his role in the matter. However, he alleged that the ICPC deliberately ignored his correspondence.
Aliyu maintained that he had no direct or principal involvement in the supposed fraudulent contract. He asserted that he only received N45 million on behalf of Lawal Abubakar, who, according to him, is the real contractor linked to the University of Jos project.
As part of the evidence submitted, Aliyu explained that after the contract collapsed, Lawal Abubakar requested a refund, which he claimed was paid in June 2024. He emphasised that this crucial fact was omitted by the ICPC when presenting the case to the court.
He further argued that the ICPC's decision to initiate criminal proceedings against him while the matter was still in court violated the principle of non-duplicity and amounted to an abuse of judicial process.
Aliyu described the warrant declaring him wanted as an unexpected blow, saying he only learned about it through widespread reports on social media and in national newspapers. He added that he was committed to clearing his name and had voluntarily reported to the ICPC headquarters on 15 September, just three days after the warrant became public.
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