“That you, Abdullahi
Umar Ganduje sometime between the period of September 2020 and March 2021 or
thereabout, at Kano in the Kano Judicial Division, together with one Hafsat
Umar (your spouse) and Abubakar Bawuro, a Businessman, Safari Textile Ltd, a
limited liability company, wholly owned and maintained by the 3rd Defendant,
agreed to do an illegal act to wit: dishonestly converted to your own use the
sum of N1,376,000,000.00 (One Billion Three Hundred and seventy-six million
Naira) through account No. 7085982019 belonging to the 3rd Defendant being
monies earmarked and approved for the purchase and supply of face marks and
other hospital equipment for the health sector, thereby causing wrongful loss
to the people and government of Kano State and thereby jointly committed the
offence of Criminal Conspiracy contrary to section 96 and punishable under
section 97 of The penal code (as amended) CAP, 105, Vol.2. The Laws of Kano
State of Nigeria, 1991,” part of the charge sheet reads
“That you, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, sometime between the
period of September 2020 and January 2022 or thereabout, at Kano in the Kano
Judicial Division, together with one Hafsat Umar (your spouse) and Abubakar
Bawuro, a Businessman, Safari Textile Ltd, a limited liability company, while
entrusted with the sum of N1,376,000,000.00 (One Billion Three Hundred and
seventy-six million Naira) or dominion over the said sum, earmarked for the
purchase and supply of face masks and other hospital equipment dishonestly
misappropriated and/or converted the said sum to your own use through account
No. 7085982019 belonging to the 3rd defendant, thereby jointly committed the
offence of Criminal Breach of Trust contrary to section 311 and punishable
under section 312 of The penal code (as amended) CAP, 105, Vol.2.
“That you, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje sometime between the
period March of 2021 or thereabout, at Kano in the Kano Judicial Division,
while serving as the Governor and being a public servant in the government of
Kano State for your own benefit and that of your immediate family conspire with
the 4th defendant (Umar Abdullahi Umar) being your biological son using 6th
defendant (Lamash Properties Ltd) a company owned and or operated by members of
your family including the 4th defendant and dishonestly allocated 501 (five
hundred and one) high-density plots of lands you hold in trust for the benefit
all Nigerians at Zawachiki layout No. TP/KNUPD/256B in the name of the 6th
defendant company under the pretext of site and services arrangement in the land
compulsory acquired by you being the Governor of Kano State from destitute
members of the public (peasant farmers) where it was sold and the proceed part
of which the sum of #700,000,000.00 (Seven Hundred Million Naira) was deposited
in the account of Bureau de change operator vision Steel link Ltd No. Domicile
at Access Bank where dollar equivalent was given to the 4th defendant to the
detriment of the people and government of Kano State thereby jointly committed
the offence of Criminal Conspiracy contrary to section 96 and punishable under
section 97 of The penal code (as amended) CAP,105, Vol.2. The Laws of Kano
State of Nigeria, 1991.
“That you, Abdullahi
Umar Ganduje sometime between the period March of 2021 or thereabout, at Kano
in the Kano Judicial Division, while serving as the Governor and being a public
servant in the government of Kano State for your own benefit and that of your
immediate family conspire with the 4th defendant Umar Abdullahi Umar, being
your biological son using 6th defendant Lamash Properties Ltd a company
substantially owned and or operated by members of your family including the 4th
defendant and dishonestly allocated 501 (five hundred and one) high-density
plots of lands you hold in trust for the benefit all Nigerians at Zawachiki
layout No. TP/KNUPDA/256B in the name of the 6th defendant company under the
pretext of site and services arrangement in the land compulsory acquired by you
as a governor of Kano state from destitute members of the public (peasant farmers)
which was sold and the proceeds, the sum of #700,000,000.00 (Seven Hundred
Million Naira) was deposited in the account of Bureau de change operator vision
Steel link Ltd No. 7816362026 Domicile at FCMB where dollar equivalent was
given to the 4th defendant thereby causing wrongful gain to yourself and
causing wrongful loss to the people and government of Kano State thereby
jointly committed the offence Criminal Breach of Trust contrary to section 311
and read together with section 79 and punishable under section 312 of The Penal
Code (as amended), CAP. 105, Vol. 2. The Laws of the Kano State of Nigeria,
1991.”
The state government said a forensic expert would analyse
the video, showing the former governor receiving dollar notes from a
contractor.
BACKGROUND
Ganduje, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress
(APC), served as governor of Kano from 2015 to 2023.
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 newspaper said the former governor requested $5 million
as a 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
incident in 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.
