The National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and former Kano State governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, would be arraigned before a Kano High Court on April 17 over allegations of dollar bribery, diversion and misappropriation of public funds that include $413,000 and N1.38 billion bribery, among others.
The other respondents in the case are: Ganduje’s wife, Hafsat, his son, Abubakar Baru, Umar Abdullahi Umar, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited and Lasage General Enterprises Limited.
The case filed by the state government will be heard by Justice Usman Malam Na’aba.
According to the court summon, the respondents face an eight-count charge. One of the charges read that,” Abdullahi Umar Ganduje sometimes between the period of January 10, 2016 or thereabout, at Kano in the Kano Judicial Division, while serving as the governor of Kano State and being a public servant in the government of Kano State corruptly asked for and received the sum of $200,000 being benefit for himself from one of the beneficiaries of contracts awarded by the Kano State Government on his instruction and approval as part of his function as the Governor of Kano State.”
The sheet stated that the action was an act of official corruption contrary to and punishable under Section 22 of The Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-corruption Commission Law 2008 (as amended), Law No2 of 2009, Laws of Kano State of Nigeria.
The sheet further stated: “That you, Abdulahi Umar Ganduje Sometimes between the period of February 10, 2017 or there about, at Kano in the Kano Judicial Division, while serving as the Governor of Kano State and being a public servant in the government of Kano State Respondents agreed to do or caused to be done an illegal act, to wit, dishonestly and/or corruptly to your own advantage collected a kick back of the sum of $213,000 being money generated from people and entities seeking or holding the execution of Kano State Government contact and or project for the remodeling of Kantin Kwari textile market as a bribe through one of the contractors (agent).”
The sheet held that the former governor thereby committed the offence of official corruption contrary to and punishable under Section 22 of The Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-corruption Commission Law 2008 (as amended), Law No2 of 2009, Laws of Kano State of Nigeria.
The Chief of Staff to Ganduje, Mallam Mohammed Garba could not be reached as he was said to have travelled to Saudi Arabia for lesser Hajj. His Chief Press Secretary, Eddy Olofu, did not pick the calls put across to him.
An official of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who was not authorized to speak, however, told Daily Sun that a Federal High Court had recently delivered judgement affirming that only the EFCC and a Federal High Court can prosecute the dollar bribery allegation case.
He observed that what the state government had smartly done was to adjust and then refile the same dollar bribery allegation case before the state High Court despite the fact that a judgement had been delivered on who can hear the case.
Meanwhile, Chief Oliver Okpala, media aide to Ganduje has accused Governor Yusuf of carrying a vendetta against Ganduje, who was his predecessor in office. Okpala, in a statement, urged Yusuf to concentrate on his primary assignment of serving the people of Kano State, better their lives, and provide democratic dividends to them, and assuming the position of an anti-corruption crusader.
“The responsibility of a governor so elected is to provide the people with dividends of good governance, including critical infrastructure and other benefits to help alleviate their sufferings, rather than chasing the past which would take the government backwards.
“How can a governor of a state, on assumption of office, resort to setting up an investigation panel to probe only one person alone, his predecessor Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje? This action he has resorted to for the past eight months while other governors are busy since assuming office providing public infrastructure in their states.
“One is therefore tempted to conclude that his present attacks and actions against Dr Abdullahi Ganduje are a clear case of bias and vendetta.”
He described the charges against Ganduje as “wild fascinations of disjointed thoughts on a mangled mindset and challenged the governor to extend the scope of his probe to other past governors of the state, including Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, the leader of New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), if indeed, he is interested in probing how the resources of the state were spent. He further said, “If Gov Abba Kabir Yusuf wants to undertake a probe, he should begin from 1999 when this democratic dispensation began.
“Ganduje is not the only person who has governed Kano state, either as civilian or military governor, Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso the leader of Gov Abba’s party, the NNPP, governed the state for eight years. So why not extend the so-called probe from 2011 to 2023 so that it would be holistic to include even when Kwankwaso was in power?
“He should know that those who governed the state in the past including the NNPP leader, Kwankwanso were not saints. The APC in Kano State and other groups have also accused Kwankwanso of not having run a clean administration.”
Okpala said the people of Kano State have continued to suffer neglect while the State Government chases shadows. “As we speak, the people of Kano State are complaining and weeping bitterly over water scarcity and the government is busy chasing shadows and diversionary platforms.
“The cries and groaning of the people of Kano State have reached the high heavens as they say they have no water to drink. It is no longer news that there is an acute water shortage in Kano city which is the capital of the state.”
Okpala cautioned Yusuf to tread cautiously because those who look back when they should look forward never make progress. “History is rife with examples that those who focus on bitter wars of attrition don’t achieve progress for their people. It is a journey of decay. Those who look back are always doomed to fall into great potholes because their vision would be beclouded.
“Yusuf must be told that he cannot leave his responsibilities as Governor of Kano and be chasing shadows or using diversionary tactics to deprive them of their basic needs. He has been receiving prompt allocations from the federation account. What has he done with it? Soon he would be marking one year in office, what has he to show for it? Would he list fighting Ganduje as his achievement in office?” Okpala queried.