The State High Court in Kano has fixed a date for the arraignment of Kano’s ex-governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, his wife, son, and five others, for bribery allegations tendered against them.
The Kano State High Court fixed April 17, 2024 for arraignment of Ganduje, his wife and son.
The ex-governor, Ganduje and the others are set to be charged on eight counts bordering on a $413,000 bribery allegation, diversion, and misappropriation of funds to the tune of N1.38bn, among others.
It was earlier reported that the Federal High Court in Kano ruled that the Kano Public Compliant and Anti-Corruption Commission have showed insufficiency in power to investigateex-governor Ganduje over an alleged $5m bribery video.
The Judge of this case, Justice Abdullahi Liman, while delivering his judgment, said the offence was a federal offence that could be prosecuted by the Attorney General of the Federation and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Justice Liman said the Kano anti-graft agency had a limitation in investigating the former governor.
On Monday, the state governor, His Excellency, Governor Abba Yusuf, urged the EFCC to release the result of its investigationinto the alleged dollar bribery video involving Ganduje.
Governor Yusuf, in his statement delivered by his spokesperson, Sanusi Tofa, said Ganduje should rather prepare to face his trial instead of talking about non-existent failure in the current administration.
“For whatever option, the Kano State Government would advise the acting National Chairman of APC to show cause why his name, that of his family, and the entire people of Kano should permanently be erased from the global embarrassment that the dollar video has generated,” he said.
However, in an ordered warrant, on Tuesday, the Kano State Government in a criminal suit, named Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, Hafsat Umar, Abubakar Bawuro, Umar Abdullahi Umar, JibrillaMuhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited and Lesage General Enterprises as respondents and assembled 15 witnesses to appear before the court.
The case is fixed for April 17, 2024, before Justice Usman Na’aba of the state High Court, Number Four.
Confirming the development to Daily Trust, the state Attorney General, Haruna Dederi, said the case has been filed, and all parties involved will be served accordingly.
“It is very true. We have filed the case but what I cannot confirm is whether he is served or not but he will definitely be served. What he (Ganduje) doesn’t understand is that you cannot run away from the evil day, it will definitely come to you and this will even serve as a bidding to all of us.
“He was saying that we can’t prosecute him forgetting that the offence also falls under the category of the state offences. It’s not totally a federal affair,” he said.
Chinedum Anayo 
saharandaily