The Kano High Court has assumed jurisdiction to hear the alleged misappropriation of public funds filed against the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu made the ruling over an amended 11-count charge instituted by the Kano Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission, against the former Kano State Governor, his Wife, Dr. Hafsat Umar; Son, Umar Abdullahi Ganduje, and five others, the defendants are accused of bribery, misappropriation, and diversion of public funds running into billions of naira.
Along with seven other defendants, Ganduje had moved an application for a preliminary objection to challenge the jurisdiction of the court to hear the matter.
Other defendants are Abubakar Bawuro, Umar Abdullahi Umar, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited, and Lasage General Enterprises Limited.
When the matter came for ruling on pending motions on Tuesday, Justice Aliyu dismissed Ganduje’s preliminary objection, describing it as incompetent to stall the hearing.
Citing relevant provisions on point of law, Justice Aliyu held that charges filed by the prosecution on May 13, 2024, against the defendants are competent for trial.
The court subsequently posited that powers to investigate criminal matters do not rest solely in the hands of the police, and affirmed the right of the state Anti-Corruption agency to equally carry out investigations on criminal issues.
The presiding Judge also dismissed similar applications filed by the seven defendants that challenged her jurisdiction to sit on the matter.
Subsequently, the court summoned the defendants to appear on the next adjourned date for a hearing; however, it added that the trial would proceed even in the absence of Ganduje and seven others. The case was adjourned to July 30 and July 31, 2025, for hearing.
Earlier, the prosecution counsel, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, hinted at the notice of reply to the preliminary objections to all the respondents and urged the court to dismiss the respondents’ applications for lack of merit.
In a counter-argument, Barr. Lydia Oluwakemi Oyewo, counsel to Ganduje, wife, and son, Lydia Oluwakemi Oyewo, objected to the position of the prosecution. She urged the court to quash all charges against the defendants.
In the amended criminal charges, the Complainant said: “Kano state Government on your (Ganduje) instruction and approval asked one of the receivers of USSD 120,000 from a beneficiary of a contract awarded by Kano state government, contrary to and punishable under section 22 of the Kano State Public Complaint and Anti-Corruption Commission law 2008, (as amended) law no. 2 of 2009.
“That on February 10, 2017, Abdullahi Ganduje dishonestly and/or corruptly to your advantage collected a kick-back of the sum of USSD 213,000 being money generated from people and entities seeking or holding the execution of Kano state government contract or project for the remoulding of Kantin-Kwari textile market as a bribe through one of the contractors.”
THE GUARDIAN
