Kano govt files fresh charge against Ganduje

The Kano State Government filed a fresh charge on Tuesday against former governor Abdullahi Ganduje.

In the case with number K/143c/24, the state government accused Mr Ganduje, incumbent National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and erstwhile Commissioner for Justice, Musa Lawan, of criminal conspiracy and misappropriation contrary to section 308 of the Penal Code.

The alleged offence is punishable under section 309 of the law.

The government also charged him with abuse of office contrary to and punishable under section 97 and section 315.

The prosecution proposed four witnesses to prove the case.

No date has been fixed for the arraignment.

NAN reports that the state government filed on 4 April charges against Mr Ganduje, his wife, Hafsat Umar, and six others before the Kano State High Court.

The six others are Mr Ganduje’s son, Umar Abdullahi Umar; Abubakar Bawuro, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Ltd., Safari Textiles Ltd., and Lesage General Enterprises.

However, the defendants have not appeared before the court.

The judge, Amina Aliyu, has expressed concern about the defendants’ failure to appear in court despite being served the charges through a substituted means.

The judge has proceeded to record a not-guilty plea for all the defendants.

The defence lawyer, Nuraini Jimoh, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), has also filed a preliminary objection challenging the validity of the charges.

The judge heard the objection, which the prosecution opposed and adjourned for a ruling. A date has yet to be fixed for the ruling.

The prosecution, led by Adeola Adediyo, a SAN, has asked the court for a bench warrant for the defendants’ arrest.

Mr Ganduje has faced scrutiny since his time in office as governor, particularly following the emergence of a video clip depicting him allegedly receiving bribes in bales of dollars from a contractor and stuffing them in his agbada.

Since coming on board, the administration of Governor Abba Yusuf, Mr Ganduje’s predecessor, has revived the case.

The state’s anti-corruption commission asked Mr Ganduje to appear to clear his name on the scandal, but he declined the invitation.

In March, the Federal High Court in Kano ruled in his favour, holding that the state’s anti-corruption and public complaints commission lacked the power to investigate former governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje, over the dollar bribery scandal.

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The judge, Abdullahi Liman, ruled that the alleged offence is a federal offence that can only be prosecuted by the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

In addition to the legal challenges, the former governor is also contending with the reversal of his policies and legacies by his successor. Notable among them is the reversal of the splitting of the Kano emirate and the reinstatement of Lamido Sanusi as the emir. The Kano emirate crisis has lingered, with different courts issuing others favouring the opposing sides but failed to bring a resolution.

. (NAN)