The Kaduna State House of Assembly Adhoc Committee investigating the financial dealings under the immediate-past administration of Governor Nasir el-Rufai is set to release the report of its investigation this week.
The probe followed disclosure by the state governor, Senator Uba Sani, on 31st March that his administration inherited a huge debt burden which has left the state with amounts not enough to pay workers’ salaries.
The governor had revealed while addressing a town hall meeting at the late Umaru Yar’Adua Hall, Kaduna that his administration inherited a total of $587million, N85bn, and N115bn contract liabilities from the ex-governor.
Two weeks later, on April 16, the state House of Assembly resolved and constituted an ad-hoc committee “to investigate loans, financial transactions, contractual liabilities and other related matters of the Government of Kaduna state from 29th May, 2015 to 29th May, 2023.”
Chairman of the committee, Henry Danjuma, the ad hoc committee was “to check if there are misdemeanours.”
The move to probe El-Rufai was backed by the state chapter of the All-Progressives Congress as a right step in the right direction.
The committee subsequently invited and grilled former aides of ex-Governor El-Rufai.
Those grilled included a former Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Thomas Gyang; former education commissioner, Ja’afaru Sani; agric commissioner, Dr Manzo Maigari; Administrator, Zaria Metropolitan Authority, Balarabe Aliyu; Administrator, Kafanchan Metropolitan Authority, Phoebe Yayisukai; as well as former Managing Director of Kaduna State Roads Agency, Lawal Magaji, among others.
A source in the ad-hoc committee confided in NewsNGR on Tuesday that the report will be released before the end of this week.
“Just wait for the report, it will be released this week,” the lawmaker responded when our correspondent asked to know some of the findings of the committee.
Pressed further to give an insight into what to expect in the report, the lawmaker said he would prefer not to pre-empt the report.
However, one man who expects El-Rufai to be indicted in the report is former Kaduna Central senator, Shehu Sani, who was one of those that called for probe of the ex-governor.
Three days after Governor Sani revealed the indebtedness of the state, Senator Sani posted an advisory on X (former Twitter), stating:
“The looting of Kaduna State cannot be remedied by revelations alone but by courageously constituting a probe panel headed by an independent professional accountant or auditor who will invite;
“…and investigate ex-government officials and their proxy contractors to account for the millions in dollars and billions in Naira that were misused or outrightly stolen, including the $350 million loan.
“Kaduna State is at its hour of reckoning with the truth I foretold and the truth for which I was vilified.”
The people of Kaduna State will soon know how El-Rufai handled the state funds during his eight years as governor.