The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, has berated Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, over the corruption probe of his administration.

The Kano State Government had announced its readiness to file criminal charges against Ganduje over alleged bribery of $413,000 and N1.38 billion.

Ganduje was Kano governor between 2015 and 2023.

Reacting, the APC chairman, in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Edwin Olofu, on Friday, April 5, 2024, said Yusuf should stop using diversionary tactics to cover up for the governor’s failure to deliver to the people of the Kano State.

Ganduje also described the probe as “an unfortunate and sorry attempt to shift public glare from the fact that there is really nothing on the ground in the state to justify the sharp increase in statutory allocations to the state since the inception of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration on May 29, 2023.”

He added: “In their desperate attempt to malign me and my family, they either forgot or probably cannot conduct themselves by the dictates of the law.

Kano gov probes Ganduje, inaugurates two judicial panels

“They failed to take judicial notice of the recent pronouncement of the Federal High Court in Kano which ruled that the so-called offence I am being accused of is a federal offence that can only be prosecuted by the Attorney General of the Federation and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

“Rather than join issues with my traducers in Kano over the trumped-up charges levelled against me, I would implore them to redirect their energies towards easing the plights of our people in Kano.

“They still have the opportunity to revert to my blueprint for the sustainable growth and development of Kano State. It is not yet late in the day for them to emulate my developmental strides. They can still salvage the situation as my tenure was devoid of any wrongdoings.”

Ganduje further described the decision by the Kano State Government to set up two committees to probe him over alleged misappropriation of public property, political violence, and missing persons in the state as a welcome development.

The APC chairman, however, noted that it would have been in the best interest of the state to extend the dateline of the probe to commence from 1999 to date.

Ganduje said: “As the saying goes, he who comes to equity must come with clean hands. It shouldn’t be seen as targeted at my administration alone. It should not be seen to be borne out of malice, vindictiveness and ill will. It should be for public good and interest.

“We conducted the affairs of governance in the state openly and transparently during my tenure. We don’t need to be seeking direction from our masters to do what is proper.”

The Star