There is uneasy calm in the All Progressives Congress (APC) following the purported sack of its National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, by members of his ward, in the Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area of Kano State and his reinstatement by the State Working Committee (SWC) in a counter move.
The executive council of Ganduje ward had announced his suspension during a press briefing in Kano, yesterday, citing corruption and other vices. But in a swift reaction, the State Working Committee (SWC) dismissed the action of the ward executives as illegal, null and void.
Hours after the drama began unfolding, the national headquarters of the governing party in Abuja was gripped by tension. The agitated secretariat staff were seen in pockets of groups discussing the development and expressing concerns whether the same fate that consumed Adams Oshiomhole would befall Ganduje.
The apprehension heightened when the embattled chairman, who was billed to preside over a regular weekly National Working Committee (NWC) meeting, failed to show up. To worsen their anxiety, the few national officers that reported, hurriedly left after spending a few minutes.
Among the national officers that breezed into the national secretariat included the Deputy National Chairman (South), Emma Eneukwu, National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu, who left immediately after presenting certificate of participation to the aspirants for this weekend’s Ondo State governorship primary.
Although the NWC meeting could not be held as arranged, the late arrival of the National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru, and the Deputy National Secretary, Festus Fuanter, brought some relief to the anxious workers. Some of the secretariat staff admitted to worrying over the future of their boss, wondering if he can wriggle out of the situation that consumed his predecessor a few years ago.
“He should not have even allowed the pronouncement to take place in the first place. Now that the suspension has been announced, it may go beyond the state chapter executive overturning the ward executive decision. Was there any weapon Oshiomhole did not apply to upturn his suspension, including obtaining several court judgments, yet he could not escape the dangling hammer?
Ganduje’s suspension came a few weeks after the former governor was slammed with an eight-count charge bordering on corruption and misappropriation of public funds.
Announcing the suspension at a press briefing, yesterday, legal adviser of the Ganduje ward, Dawakin-Tofa Local Government Area, Halladu Gwanjo, said the former governor stands suspended as a member of the ward until he exonerated himself of the corruption baggage, particularly the celebrated dollar video.
“We, the leaders of the APC in Ganduje ward, Dawakin Tofa Local Government, engaged in thorough deliberations and subsequently decided to suspend the erstwhile governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, in light of the allegations of bribery involving foreign currency,” he said.
In 2017, a viral video had captured Ganduje allegedly receiving bundles of dollar notes as a bribe from a man said to be a contractor and stuffing them in the pockets of his Babanriga.
Ganduje had denied the content of the video when it first surfaced and maintained his innocence but years after, the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP)’s administration of Governor Abba Yusuf revisited the case and vowed to prosecute the former governor.
The Kano High Court would arraign Ganduje tomorrow on charges bordering on allegations of bribery, diversion, and misappropriation of funds, including the purported acceptance of $413,000 and N1.38 billion in bribes.
The state Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Haruna Dederi, had said Ganduje would be arraigned alongside his wife and six others.
The accused individuals, as listed in the writ of summon, include Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, Hafsat Umar, Abubakar Bawuro, Umar Abdullahi Umar, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Ltd., Safari Textiles Ltd., and Lesage General Enterprises.
The state government, which initiated the criminal suit against the eight respondents, has declared its readiness to present 15 witnesses to testify before Usman Na’aba of State High Court number four.
“It is very true. We have filed the case and it is going to be held on April 17, 2024. What I cannot confirm is whether he is served or not, but he will definitely be served.” Dederi further highlighted the significance of accountability in governance, remarking, “What he (Ganduje) does not understand is that you cannot run away from the evil day, it will definitely come to you, and this will even serve as a deterrence to all of us that are also in government now.”
The commissioner also addressed the jurisdictional aspect of the case.
“He (Ganduje) was saying we cannot prosecute him, forgetting that the offence also falls under the category of the state offences. It is not totally a federal affair and we have even appealed to Justice Liman ruling on that,” he said.
At a press conference, yesterday, Gwanjo, the ward legal advisor, who spoke on behalf of the executive members, accused the former governor of gross misconduct and misappropriation of public funds during his administration.
He said the former governor stands suspended as a member of the ward until he exonerates himself of the corruption baggage.
“We resolved to pass a vote of no confidence in the national chairman of the party due to his inability to clear his name from allegations of corruption, particularly the ‘dollar video’ that went viral.
“The APC leaders in Ganduje ward are worried that the party is being subjected to unnecessary embarrassment from the rival New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) over unsubstantiated allegations of corruption levelled against Ganduje’s administration.
“Ganduje ward leaders deem it fit to suspend the national chairman to enable him concentrate on the litigation and other hanging issues so that he could appropriately clear his image and that of his family.
“President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to the ongoing fight against corruption has made it necessary for Ganduje to deal with the seeming baggage of corruption hanging on his neck as it is already denting the reputation of the APC-led Federal Government.
“We, the leaders of the APC in Ganduje ward, after thorough deliberations, decided to suspend the chairman to give him time to clear his name.
“Since Ganduje has been summoned to court to answer for these accusations, we are being proactive as it could potentially hurt the reputation of our political party,” he said.
At press time, another twist had reared its head as the Ganduje ward executive committee members distanced themselves from the plot to suspend Ganduje.
It denied the reported suspension of Ganduje.
According to the ward Chairman, Malam Ahmad Ganduje, who briefed journalists at the APC State Secretariat, in Kano, those purported to have announced the suspension were not members of the party.
“Those who addressed the press conference were sponsored by the NNPP state government, and from the record of the party at the ward, local government and state, they are not card-carrying members of the APC. The purported suspension is null and void, and would have no effect on the national chairman.
“The ward and local government executives, having identified the persons involved in this unfortunate situation, are already prepared to charge them to court for impersonation and calculated attempts to embarrass and dent the image of the party and that of the national chairman.”
He said they were solemnly behind the APC national chairman and have confidence in his style of leadership.
The ward chairman added that they had passed a vote of confidence in Ganduje, and urged all party members in the ward and across the state to disregard the purported suspension and remain calm in the face of the “unfortunate mischief, once again, perpetuated by the New Nigeria Peoples Party in the state.”
In his remarks, the APC Chairman, Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area, Alhaji Inusa Dawanau, said the party would take legal action against those “impersonators”, who announced Ganduje’s suspension.
Also at the conference, Gwarzo declared that he was impersonated by a “mischievous character sponsored by the opposition party.”
He swore by Allah that he knew nothing about the purported suspension of the national chairman while declaring that he would take immediate legal action against the impostor who impersonated him. He declared his absolute loyalty to the national chairman and the party leadership as a whole.
In a quick counter move, the Dawakin-Tofa Local Government chapter of the party announced the ‘immediate sack’ of those behind it.
Its chairman, Inusa Dawanau, told newsmen that those behind the suspension of the national chairman were caught in anti-party activities with records of their meetings with opposition exposed.
The state chapter of the party has also adopted the suspension of the Ganduje ward APC leaders behind the suspension of the party’s national chairman.
“We have sanctioned them for six months; a special investigation panel has been set up to verify the several allegations against them,” the state chairman, Abdullahi Abbas, told newsmen in Kano.
He said the State Working Committee had adopted the decisions of the Dawakin-Tofa Local Government APC leaders.
“We have already ordered an investigation into the anti-party allegations levelled against them.
“We have evidence of meetings between state government officials and those that suspended the national chairman, so we shall dig into the roots of the matter,” he said.
Abbas declared the suspension as invalid. It stands null and void. It cannot stand,” he said. – The SunG
