The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Dawakin Tofa LGA of Kano has suspended Abdullahi Ganduje, national chair of the party, over corruption allegations.
The suspension was announced by Halliru Gwanzo, legal
adviser of the ward, during a briefing with journalists in Kano on Monday.
Gwanzo cited allegations of bribery against Ganduje by the
Kano state government as reason for the suspension.
“We decided to suspend Dr. Ganduje from the party due to the
seriousness of the allegations against him,” Gwanzo said.
He added that the suspension will persist until Ganduje is
cleared of the charges.
Last week, the Kano high court had stated that Ganduje will
be arraigned on April 17 on charges bordering on bribery, diversion, and
misappropriation of public funds.
In a court summon, it was stated that the former governor of
Kano will be arraigned alongside his wife and son.
The other defendants in the case are Abubakar Bawuro,
Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited, and
Lesaga General Enterprises.
In a charge sheet seen by TheCable, the state government said
the offences contravened the Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption
Commission Law 2008.
BACKGROUND
In 2018, Daily Nigerian, an online newspaper, published a
video of Ganduje allegedly receiving bundles of dollars from contractors, which
he stuffed into his “babanriga”, a traditional outfit.
The APC national chairman was the governor of Kano from 2015
to 2023.
The newspaper said Ganduje requested $5 million as bribe
from the contractors who recorded the video.
In 2023, the Kano state Public Complaints and
Anti-Corruption Commission (PCACC) invited Ganduje for questioning over the
video.
The former governor did not honour the invitation and
instead instituted a suit against the agency.
In March, a federal high court in Kano stopped the agency
from inviting or questioning Ganduje over the bribery allegations.
The court ruled that the agency lacks the power to invite or
investigate Ganduje over the allegations.
Abdullahi Liman, the presiding judge, said the alleged
infraction is a federal offence that cannot be prosecuted by the state
anti-graft agency.
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