By Our Correspondent
A civil society group, operating under the aegis of Good Governance Initiative (GGI), has called on the nation’s anti-corruption agencies to investigate State Education Boards across the country, particularly the Benue State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), over alleged diversion of funds meant for basic education.
In a statement issued in Abuja on , the President of the group, Terngu Tor, urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to “rise to the task” of ensuring accountability and transparency in the management of education funds.
Tor accused the Benue SUBEB of “serial financial mismanagement” and failure to deliver on its mandate since 2023 despite increased allocations to the basic education sector.
“When the current administration took over in 2023, hopes were high that SUBEB would finally find direction.
“Two years later, that optimism has collapsed under the weight of alleged missing billions, payroll scandals, and open hostility between SUBEB and the State House of Assembly”, he alleged.
The group recalled that in December 2024, an ad-hoc committee of the Benue House of Assembly accused SUBEB of failing to account for ₦2.1 billion in Local Government Education Funds allegedly received between December 2023 and June 2024.
“Tawmakers subsequently ordered the SUBEB Chairman, Dr. Grace Adagba, to refund the funds to the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and step aside pending investigation.
“But Dr. Adagba refused to comply, snubbing multiple summons by the Committee and brushing off the legislature’s directives”, he further alleged.
Tor also alleged that “her defiance was a direct indictment of the state government’s commitment to transparency.”
“The standoff prompted the Assembly to urge Governor Hyacinth Alia to suspend her for alleged insubordination and financial impropriety, a move that exposed deep cracks within the agency and triggered a governance crisis in the state’s education system.
“Earlier, in January 2024, SUBEB had launched an “automated payroll system” to sanitize its workforce and eliminate ghost workers. However, GGI insists that the exercise was marred by irregularities.
“Behind the bureaucratic language was an uncomfortable truth.
“Teachers’ salaries had long been riddled with ghost workers, illegal deductions, and manual manipulations. What was presented as reform turned into a cover-up for deeper fraud.
“By mid-2025, the crisis worsened as board members accused Dr. Adagba of high-handedness and unilateral decision-making, effectively sidelining them from key policy and contract decisions.
“The board has been reduced to a one-man show,” one insider was quoted as saying. “Contracts are awarded without consultations, and oversight is treated as interference.” Tor alleged
GGI noted that such dysfunction had opened the door to inflated contracts, double payments, and the use of “friendly contractors,” continuing a pattern of corruption that has plagued SUBEB for years.
He alleged that the biggest losers remained pupils and teachers in Benue’s 23 local government areas.
“While billions disappear on paper, classrooms still leak when it rains. Desks are broken, textbooks are scarce, and teachers complain of delayed salaries and lack of training, precisely the issues those billions were meant to fix,” Tor further alleged.
“GGI is demanding full disclosure from the state government, including publication of the audit report that led to the ₦2.1 billion refund order, and details of the payroll automation exercise — such as the number of ghost workers removed and the amount of money saved.
“So far, the Benue State Government has not issued any official statement on whether the funds have been recovered or if disciplinary actions will follow.
“The Benue SUBEB scandal reflects a deeper rot in state level education management, marked by political interference, weak procurement controls and opacity in fund administration.
“Without systemic reform,” GGI warned, “SUBEB will remain a cash cow for insiders while schools rot and children’s futures are stolen”, the statement further alleged.
