Nigeria: Documents related to Ganduje’s corruption case were taken during a protest-Gov
The Kano State High Court was robbed, destroyed, and vandalized during the recent statewide hunger strike, which became violent in certain parts of the North. On Wednesday, Abba Yusuf, the governor of Kano State, conducted an on-the-spot evaluation of the court.
When on the tour, Yusuf expressed regret for the thugs that broke into and destroyed the state high court, complaining that “the hired miscreants carted away corruption charges documents on former Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, who has been facing multiple charges before the state high court.”
The governor was shown around the court grounds by the state’s attorney general and commissioner for justice, Haruna Dederi, the high court’s chief registrar, Alhaji Abdullahi Bayero, and a few judges, according to a statement released on Wednesday by the governor’s spokeswoman, Sanusi Tofa.
“Unfortunately, those who oppose Kano State employed unfavorable individuals to deface a historically significant public building in an attempt to undermine the accusations of corruption brought against the APC’s acting national chairman and former governor of the state, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, along with his associates and family,” Yusuf was cited as saying.
“Virtually all units of the high court, including the office of the state Chief Judge, were destroyed,” the statement reads. “Losses exceeding N1 billion were incurred due to the theft of office supplies, office building destruction, car burning, and other pertinent materials essential to the administration of justice.”
Governor Yusuf urged the state’s young to stop being coerced by their opponents into using violence and instead focus on developing their abilities in order to improve their future, assuring them of the government’s backing.
In order to guarantee that justice is delivered effectively, he ordered the courthouse to be immediately renovated and additional security to be placed in place.
Yusuf also commiserated with the Kano State Chief Judge, Justice Dije Abdu Aboki, and the entire judiciary over what he described as an ugly incident.
The governor commended the people of the state for their support and cooperation with his present administration and prayed for the sustenance of the tempo for peace, stability, and prosperity, and economic development in the state.
The management of the state high court had in a statement on August 4 lamented the invasion, vandalism and burning of the high court, saying investigation had begun to track down the perpetrators.
The spokesperson for the court, Baba Ibrahim, recalled that on August 1, rioters, who claimed to be #EndBadGovernment protesters, broke into the premises of the headquarters of the state high court, vandalised offices and “stole an unspecified amount of money and guns seized from kidnappers and kept as exhibits in ongoing cases.”
Ibrahim said, “Private and official vehicles parked on the premises of the court were razed, while some were vandalised by the protesters.
Offices, including that of the Chief Judge and other judges in the court, were vandalised. The protesters destroyed the new and old case files and scattered everything in the buildings.
“Exhibits, including guns kept in the court’s store, were also looted.