The office of the Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission (PCACC) has been a beehive of activities since the agency began the probe of the immediate past administration of Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, who’s now the National Chairman of the All-Progressive Congress (APC).
Ganduje, his wife Hafsat, and his son, Abdullahi Umar, have been charged to court along with four others over alleged N50 billion fraudulent diversions of public funds.
When NewsNGR visited the Commission last week, some local government officials who came to see the chairman, Muhyi Magaji Rimingado, said they were willing to testify in court against the former governor, who they alleged looted local government funds.
Sources in the Commission’s team of investigators showed NewsNGR some documents to show how Ganduje allegedly looted the state funds for eight years through phoney contracts that allowed government funds into private accounts.
Investigators claim there was an elaborate mechanism for syphoning public funds put in place under the ex-Kano governor which involved some commercial banks, private enterprises and individuals outside the government.
The Commission’s team of forensic experts have been going through every single memo and payment voucher raised by the previous administration.
For instance, an internal Kano Government memo in possession of NewsNGR, which was sent to the PCACC by the office of the Accountant General of Kano showed that Ganduje approved the release of two hundred million to Safari Textile Ltd for the supply of one million facemasks on 18th June, 2020 at the cost of N200, 000,000 (two hundred million naira) to fight Coronavirus.
The memo stated that full payment was made to the company on 3/7/2020 into an FCMB account no 0933533025. However, no payment voucher for the contract was available. Also, money for the first facemask production contract said to have been awarded earlier in May at the same sum of two million naira was released into the same FCMB account, according to the state’s accountant general.
But the payment voucher showed that the money was paid into a Fidelity Bank Account of the Permanent Secretary of the Deputy Governor’s Office, instead of the FCMB stated in the official communications!
It must be noted that the memo for the award of the contract was raised by the then Deputy Governor, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, who got his boss, then-Gov Ganduje to approve it. Gawuna had recommended Safari Textile Ltd to Ganduje. According to his memo to Ganduje, Gawuna had suggested the production of facemasks and recommended the company to execute it.
Safari Textile Ltd and its owner, Abubakar Baruwa are among the defendants in the corruption case brought against Ganduje and seven others. Two of the 8-count charges against Ganduje accused the ex-governor of conspiring with Bawuro to “dishonestly” convert the sum of N1,376,000,000.00 (One Billion Three Hundred and seventy-six million Naira) being monies earmarked and approved for the purchase and supply of face marks and other hospital equipment for the health sector for personal use.
Sources claim that Ganduje allegedly used many proxy companies, including those owned by his family to convert state funds to personal funds. Some of the family companies that are charged along with him are Lesage General Enterprise Ltd and Lamash Properties Ltd, which are both operated by Ganduje’s son—Abdullahi Umar.
Investigators in the Commission told NewsNGR that there are hundreds of such sham contract approvals and payments which are being examined to back up the case against the former governor.
The Commission, this newspaper learnt, has also focussed on approvals from the Ministry of Local Government sent to all the 44 LGs in the state during the Ganduje administration. NewsNGR learnt that the ministry was in charge of the state and local government joint account from where several billions of naira were paid into private accounts.
Investigators have found several vouchers raised for payment to certain individuals and companies for contracts not executed and for phoney contracts. In some cases, the ministry sends funds directly to the private accounts of treasurers of LGs and issues memos stating how the money should be disbursed.
Yet, in some cases, the ministry, acting under the directives of then-Gov Ganduje, would direct LG treasurers to pay a certain amount of money for some phoney contracts executed on behalf of the LG. Names and account numbers of some companies are then forwarded to the treasurers for payment.
One of such vouchers seen by NewsNGR followed a memo to the chairman of Tarauni Local Government by the treasurer, dated 06/9/2022, which informed the chairman that the ministry had written that the sum of N9, 790, 227.27 be paid for the supply of diesel for the month of June 2022.
In the payment voucher raised by the local government seen by NewsNGR, the ministry, rather than the supply companies, is the payee. The voucher was raised in the name of the Ministry of Local Government.
“There are many cases similar to these which we’re compiling,” said a source working on the case. “This is how they steal public funds.
Court Charges Against Ganduje
The PCACC has filed an eight-count charge at the Kano High Court against Ganduje and seven others alleging several corrupt activities. The charges accuse Ganduje of taking a bribe of $200,000 from a beneficiary of a state government contract, and another $213,000 kickback from a contractor handling the remodelling of the Kantin Kwari textile market in Kano.
In the third and fourth charges, Ganduje and others were accused of criminal conspiracy and breach of trust involving N1.376bn earmarked for the purchase of face masks and other medical equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ganduje, his wife Hafsat, and businessman Abubakar Bawuro allegedly diverted the funds for their personal use.
Ganduje is also accused of conspiring with his wife and son using two companies – Properties Ltd and Lesage General Enterprise Ltd – to acquire state properties, sell them and pocket the sum of N700,000,000.00 (Seven Hundred Million Naira) which was part of the proceed of the sales.
They’re Blackmailing Ganduje – Kano APC
Ibrahim Zakari, Secretary of the All Progressive Congress in Kano, laughed when NewsNGR asked him to react to the allegations against Ganduje.
He said the end game of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) is to ensure that Ganduje is removed as the National Chairman of the APC so that Rabiu Kwankwaso and his followers in the NNPP could decamp to the party.
“It’s a game of blackmail they are playing because they’re afraid of Ganduje,” said Zakari.
“They wanted to decamp to APC but they know that they will be under the National Chairman of the party so they want to do their best to see that Ganduje is removed as national chairman so that they can come into the party. That is the game.”
He described all the allegations as frivolous, stressing that Ganduje did not steal Kano funds. Speaking further, he said, “They can’t succeed. Because they brought people to say Ganduje was suspended from the party. Security people are looking for those who claimed they suspended Ganduje from APC to come and testify in court, but they’re on the run.
“So, the game they’re playing is to blackmail the national chairman and it will not succeed. Even if they withdraw from the court, we will take them to court to prove that Ganduje did not steal any money.”
He said Governor Abba Yusuf’s administration has failed to fulfil its promises to the people of Kano and is covering up the failure by promoting the alleged corrupt acts of his predecessor.
Tinubu Should Sack Ganduje As Proof Of Anti-Corruption – NNPP
The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has called for the sacking of Ganduje as national chairman of the APC to show that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is serious about the anti-corruption fight.
Kano State chairman of the party, Hashimu Sulaiman Dungurawa, who spoke to NewsNGR in Kano, said:
“I’m from Ganduje’s local government and the people of his LG are not happy with him because of the series of allegations of corruption against him.
“We saw videos that Ganduje was pocketing dollars given to him as bribe; we saw reports about how he went away with over hundred million naira pension fund; we heard he sold state lands and pocketed the money and so on.
“What the current government of kano is doing to prosecute Ganduje will be a strong signal to future leaders to always do the right things.
“We pray that our indefatigable president, our capable president that is out to fight corruption, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu if he’s serious enough about fighting corruption, the first step to take is to do away with Ganduje as National Chairman of APC. That is when Nigerians will believe he’s out to fight corruption. Let him do the right thing. “