Disquiet in Magodo II over ‘funds misappropriation’ by estate management

The alleged mismanagement of funds by Magodo Residents Association (MRA) leadership has caused a rumpus in the estate located in the Shangisha area of Kosofe LGA, Lagos state.

Some residents of the estate have accused the management, led by Sheriff Daramola, of misappropriation, TheCable understands.

Lawson Adesokan, the MRA’s internal auditor, raised the alarm about the alleged infractions in an internal memo.

The auditor cited the approval and disbursement of funds for “Police PR”, a form of monetary compensation given to police officers assigned to secure the estate.

In the memo dated December 12, 2023, and seen by TheCable, Adesokan challenged Daramola for approving four additional police officers as security for the estate without the approval of the board of trustees (BoT) and central consultative council (CCC).

The auditor also chided the chairman for approving N4,800,000 per annum for additional security, saying it was above his approval limit.

“I understand payment of PR to the police commanders is not unusual, but if the amount is running over N10 million, it should not be handled by only one person, which in this case is the security secretary,” the auditor said.

“An additional N4,800,000 per annum and to be disbursed by only one person is prone to fraud, and it is a concern to me.

“Besides, the method of transferring the money out of the association is questionable.

“A fictitious payment voucher will be prepared and cash paid to a staff member by the name Moses Alawode who knows nothing about the intended purpose.

“The money will then be transferred by him to the security secretary. This to me is a red flag right there.”

COMMITTEES SET UP TO PROBE ALLEGATIONS

Due to the concerns raised by the auditor, an investigative committee was set up by the estate’s BoT and Magodo residents general assembly.

The committee was tasked with probing the alleged mismanagement of the estate’s security funds by Kunle Kosile, the security secretary.

In its report submitted in June 2024, the committee said it discovered “discrepancies in the payment of allowances to police officers, lack of documentation and oversight in the disbursement of funds, and significant weaknesses in the current financial management practices”.

The committee said payments made to police officers by the security secretary were not “documented”.

The committee recommended the suspension of Kosile over alleged mismanagement of funds.

“The investigation revealed significant weaknesses in the current financial management practices related to the payment of security allowances and public relations funds,” the report reads.

“The security secretary had disproportionate control over the process, with insufficient oversight and documentation, leading to potential mismanagement of funds.

“The mismanagement of funds has undermined the trust and transparency within the estate association, potentially jeopardizing the security arrangements and financial stability of the estate.

“The lack of proper documentation and oversight has created vulnerabilities that could be exploited, leading to financial losses and dissatisfaction among the security personnel.”

AD-HOC COMMITTEE REPORT

A report submitted by an ad-hoc committee said it was discovered that Kosile received money from the association from May 2023 to August 2024 without disbursing the funds to police officers from the Isheri division.

The ad-hoc committee said the security secretary “failed to report the above diversion of funds or provide documentation where the unused funds were utilised”.

“The Divisional Police Officer and Station Officer both of Isheri division confirmed regular payment of allowances till May 2023, and thereafter no payment has been made to them till date,” the report reads.

“The Security Secretary, Mr. Kunle Kosile, also admitted to receiving the payments from the MRA accounts department all through the year 2023 and did not remit the same to the officers in Isheri since May 2023 till date.

“The Security Secretary continuously included the DPO and Station officer Isheri in the list of officers, which also included officers from the Magodo Station to be paid from the total sum of N175,000.00 payments monthly that was approved by the CMC Chairman —  Mr. Sheriff Daramola, from June 2023 till December 2023, thereby using their names to get approval for funds to be disbursed and same funds were diverted.

“The Station Officer in Magodo also testified that the monthly payments to Magodo Police post continued promptly till September 2023, but payments seized in October 2023 till the second week in December 2023 where all outstanding were paid with the Station officer Magodo testifying that the payments and gifts given to him from the Security Secretary were personal gifts not from MRA.

“However, records show payments from the MRA accounts were disbursed. promptly every month for the same purpose.”

In a letter addressed to residents, and dated September 30, 2024, Nosa Ebomoyi, president of MRA, south-west zone, said the allegations of funds mismanagement could result in “the revolt of payment of dues” in the estate.

Ebomoyi asked that the matter be handled with care while calling on residents to prepare for the next general meeting during which the allegations would be further addressed.