N1.38BN BRIBE: STOP CHASING SHADOWS, GANDUJE REPLIES KANO GOV
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The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, on Friday, warned Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, to concentrate on bringing good governance to his people instead of embarking on a futile attempt to drag his name in the mud.
Ganduje was reacting to the decision of the state government to file criminal charges against him over alleged bribery of $413,000 and N1.38bn, respectively.
Yusuf had on the assumption of office in 2023, accused the former governor of misappropriating public funds and allocating plots of land to some members of his immediate family.
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In a statement issued in Kano on Thursday, the state government disclosed that it has assembled 15 witnesses to testify against Ganduje.
Joined as co-defendants in the charge sheet dated April 3, 2024, were Ganduje’s wife Hafsat and his son, Umar.
Also listed as defendants were Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited, and Lesage General Enterprises.
Reacting via a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Edwin Olofu, on Friday, Ganduje said the bribery allegation was an ‘unfortunate and sorry attempt’ to shift attention from the fact that there was nothing on ground in the state that the governor can use to justify the huge allocations he has been receiving since the inception of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Ganduje said the move was the latest attempt by the state government to drag his name in the mud, adding that it also spoke volumes on the level of ‘crass ignorance and disregard for the rule of law’ by the governor.
He said, “In their desperate attempt to malign me and my family, they either forgot or probably cannot conduct themselves by the dictates of the law. They failed to take judicial notice of the recent pronouncement of the Federal High Court in Kano, which ruled that the so-called offence I am being accused of is a federal offence that can only be prosecuted by the Attorney General of the Federation and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
“Rather than join issues with my traducers in Kano over the trumped-up charges levelled against me, I would implore them to redirect their energies towards easing the plights of our people in Kano.
“They still have the opportunity to revert to my blueprint for the sustainable growth and development of Kano State. It is not yet late in the day for them to emulate my developmental strides. They can still salvage the situation as my tenure was devoid of any wrongdoing.”
Continuing, the APC chairman admonished that it would have been in the best interest of the state to extend the dateline of the probe to flag off from 1999 to date.
“As the saying goes, he who comes to equity must come with clean hands. It shouldn’t be seen as targeted at my administration alone. It should not be seen to be borne out of malice, vindictiveness, and ill will. It should be for public good and interest.
“We conducted the affairs of governance in the state openly and transparently during my tenure. We don’t need to be seeking direction from our masters to do what is proper,” he stressed.
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