By Uche Onyeali
National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, his wife Hafsat, and six other defendants will today appear before a Kano State High Court over alleged bribe.
The former governor and six others are facing charges bordering on alleged bribery, diversion and misappropriation of funds amounting to billions of naira.
The court presided over by Justice Amina Aliyu had earlier granted permission on June 5 to serve the respondents through substituted means.
Aside Ganduje, who is the first defendant, other respondents in the case are his wife, Hafsat, Abubakar Bawuro, Umar Abdullahi Umar, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Ltd and Lesage General Enterprises.
The Kano State government had in April dragged the former governor, his wife and five others to court over alleged corruption, which include misappropriation and diversion of funds during his eight years tenure in office.Part of the charges read: “That you, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, sometime between the period of January 10, 2016 or thereabout in Kano, in Kano Judicial Division, while serving as governor of Kano State and being a public servant, corruptly asked for and received $200,000 being benefit for yourself from one of the beneficiaries of contracts awarded by the state government on your instruction and approval as part of your functions as the governor of Kano State, thereby committing the offence of official corruption contrary to and punishable under Section 22 of Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-corruption Commission Law 2008 (as amended), Law N02 of 2009, Laws of Kano State of Nigeria.”That you, Abdullahi Ganduje, sometime between the period of February 2017 or thereabout at Kano, while serving as the governor of Kano State and being a public servant, agreed to do or caused to be done an illegal act, to wit, dishonesty and/or corruptly to your advantage collected a kickback of $213,000, being money generated from people and entities seeking or holding the execution of Kano State government contracts and or projects for the remodeling of Kantin Kwari textile market as bribe through one of the contractors (agent), thereby committing 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 N02 of 2009, Law of Kano State of Nigeria.”
At the previous court session, only Nuraini Jimoh (SAN) represented the sixth respondent (Lamash Properties Limited), while others, including Ganduje, were not represented.
Justice Aliyu had adjourned hearing until July 11.
