The Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission (PCCAC), has disclosed that it has traced N51.3 billion allegedly diverted by the immediate past governor of the state, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
This was as the anti-graft agency also alleged that Ganduje sold a company belonging to the state government at a ridiculous price to his family without going through due process.
The agency said that what it is tracking is well over N100 billion, adding that about 200 people have already confessed to how the Ganduje-led administration directed them to pad up their expenditure.
Chairman of the Commission, Malam Muhuyi Magaji, who disclosed these when he featured on Arise Television programme, said the funds that were traced by his commission amounted to more than half of the over N100 billion meant for Local Government Areas in the state.
The Kano State anti-graft agency boss explained that the monies were usually channelled to different Local Government Councils’ accounts after which they met with some of the Local Government staff and create false expenditure with payment vouchers and then diverted the money through a third party.
In the words of Magaji; “We traced a lot of the diverted funds to various individual accounts at the single market and subsequently took the money in cash to the State Government House with someone stationed with a counting machine.
“After that, they changed it to dollars and then took it to certain individuals. We have a Bureau de Change who will testify that money was sent to him and how it was changed to dollars.
“About 200 people confessed to the commission that they took this money and that they were asked to write that they purchased a car for hospital, purchased antigenic drugs…’ which were all lies.
“We heard it and we didn’t even see the money. We only produced the premium. But the cashier confessed to the commission that this money, we have taken it to so-and-so person and that person was invited by the commission.
“He equally confessed that, yes, this person took it to so-and-so. We established N51.3 billion. So, as I’m talking to you now, we have a cogent and verifiable evidence that we are taking to court on this case,” it said.
Magaji further said that based on evidence before the Commission, it is clear that that the wife of the former governor, was the secretary of all the accounts that were linked in such particular allegations, stressing that the allegations were not all about the 51 billion. Magaji also explained that the N51 billion in question which has so far been traced, was taken in cash.
“One particular issue was of concern. You know, a company belonging to Kano government was sold to a company that belonged to the first family and this first family, all these people you mentioned, they were directors and that, including the person that you just mentioned, visited me in the office and at the same time, the spouse, I mean the wife of the former governor, is the secretary of that account and that company is a cotton ginnery that deals with the ginnery of cotton.
“We have cotton ginnery, we have cotton tannery. All the two companies were sold. But this particular one was sold to his family and under his hand at a ridiculous price of N320 million as against the value of the property, which was N2 billion.
“Worse of it, even the said N320 million was not remitted. We were only able to trace 90 million naira and this 90 million naira, we traced it back to the Local Government money,” he said.
Magaji explained the objective of investigating Ganduje was to serve as a deterrent to others.