Bribery Allegations: Why we cannot take action against Ganduje yet—APC

The ruling All Progressives Congress has said it cannot take any
action on a video of Governor Umar Ganduje in circulation which
appeared to show him taking bribes from contractors, because the
matter had been taken to court.

The party said Mr Ganduje had sued Daily Nigerian, the platform
responsible for the two clips of the scandalous footage released
between Sunday and Monday.

“The matter is in court, the governor has taken the medium to
court,” party spokesperson, Lanre Issa-Onilu, told our reporter by
telephone Monday afternoon. “We cannot comment on a matter that is
already before a law court.”

Mr Issa-Onilu’s comments come a day after Daily Nigerian
released the initial video to the Nigerian public on Sunday hours
after a second batch was released.

The first video seemed to show the governor receiving up to
$230,000 from Kano State public works contractors for the
construction and allocation of stalls in a new market.

The governor has denied the allegations contained in the video,
first saying it was ‘cloned’ and later threatening a lawsuit
against the publisher of Daily Nigerian.

Calls have mounted for Mr Ganduje, 68, to step, but he appears
defiant so far. Critics argue that the governor has, at best,
violated money laundering laws by handling at least $230,000 (over
N82 million) in cash.

Both the police and the anti-graft EFCC separately told PREMIUM
TIMES on Monday they could not immediately commence investigation
into the videos.

The Kano State House of Assembly had earlier on Monday raised a
seven-man committee to probe the video, Daily Nigerian
reported.

Katoge Community Embarks on N10m School Project in
Katsina

The Katoge Community in Ketare District of Kankara Local
Government Area of Katsina State in collaboration with the
Community and Social Development Agency (CSDA) have embarked on a
N10 million secondary school project to alleviate the suffering of
indigent students.

Speaking at the foundation laying ceremony of the school
project, the Kanwa of Katsina and District Head of Ketare, Alhaji
Usman Bello Kankara said it was high time communities rise to the
challenge of developing their areas through communal efforts such
as the school project.

The Monarch noted that the time has gone when people will fold
arms and expect government to do everything for them adding that
it’s very important for people to embark on self-help projects.

He said the community day secondary school initiated by
communities of Katoge in Ketare district of Kankara local
government is in support of the state government transformation
agenda in the educational sector.

While commending the efforts of the community for initiating the
project, Bello Kankara pledged adequate support to any community in
his district that embarked upon self-help project through communal
efforts.

He therefore urged the management of the school to liaise with
their counterparts of Tsamiyar Jino and Pawwa who have similar
community schools for advice.

He called on parents and guardians to ensure they enrol their
children and wards into school and encourage girl child education
to bridge the existing gap in girl-child education.

He said while the education department of the local government
will post some teachers, the community will also employ some
teachers on both part time and casual basis, stressing that the
state government will provide both the principal and vice principal
of the school.

He said the school is expected to accommodate at least 300
students in the village of Katoge while other surrounding villages
will be catchment areas via the reception of their wards to the
school.

He emphasized that the days of going to Gurbi and kankara
secondary school with the attendant danger of crossing rivers and
streams are gone now with the community school now in place.

Earlier in his welcome address, the village head of Katoge
Alhaji Tukur Dan Galadima expressed appreciation of his people of
the area to Kanwa for the fatherly role in making the establishment
of the school a success.

Alhaji Tukur Dan Galadima said the school has since started at a
temporary site in the village noting that there are many catchment
areas to benefit and feed the school with students.

The Transition Committee Chairman in Kankara Alhaji Anas Isa
Kankara who was represented by his Vice Chairman Alhaji Umar Yahaya
Girbobo assured support of the local government to the development
of the school.

Also speaking at the occasion, the Education Secretary in
Kankara Local Government, Alhaji Kabir Ali said the department will
ensure posting of adequate staff to compliment the efforts of
people of the area.

The member representing Kankara in the state assembly Alhaji
Garba Dan Alhaji who was represented by Alhaji Bello Bello donated
some amount of money for the development of the school.

Shortly after the laying foundation ceremony, the Kanwa was
conducted round the land provided by the community for the
construction of blocks of classroom, offices and toilets.

By PRNigeria