A Katsina State High Court has sentenced the Director of Administration of the Sokoto Rima River Basin Development Authority (SRRBDA), Rabiu Musa Matazu, to five years in prison for diverting rent proceeds belonging to the agency.
The conviction followed a three-year trial after the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) arraigned Matazu on a four-count charge bordering on abuse of office and criminal breach of trust.
ICPC spokesperson, Demola Bakare, in a statement on Wednesday, said the conviction was a victory in the fight against corruption in public service.
The prosecution, led by ICPC counsel Ibrahim Garba, told the court that Matazu, in October 2014, unlawfully collected ₦305,000 from a subordinate, Lawal Dan Sarki, being rent proceeds from SRRBDA properties in Katsina State, and converted the funds for personal use.
One of the charges read: “That you, Rabiu Musa Matazu, in October 2014, used your position as Director of Administration to confer unfair advantage upon yourself by receiving the total sum of ₦305,000, proceeds from rent collected on behalf of SRRBDA, which you converted to your personal use.”
Although Matazu pleaded not guilty, Justice Abbas Bawule found him guilty on all four counts.
He was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment with an option of ₦20,000 fine on three counts, and five years without an option of fine on the fourth count. The sentences are to run concurrently.
Reacting to the judgment, the ICPC described it as “a clear signal that public officials who betray the trust reposed in them for personal gain will face the full weight of the law.”
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