Political drama in Kano State took another dimension when the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) initiated a probe of Muhuyi Magaji Rimingado, chairman of the Kano state public complaints and anti-corruption commission in the state.
Rimingado who was recently reinstated by the new Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf as the anti-corruption boss in the state is investigating ex-governor Abdullahi Ganduje who was seen in a video with wads of dollars alleged to be a proceed of kickbacks.
Ganduje who is now the Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress is belei ed to be fighting back by orchestrating the probing by both the EFCC and CCB.
“The Code of Conduct Bureau is investigating a case of alleged violation of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers against a staff of your organisation by name Muhuyi Magaji Rimin Gado,” CCB wrote in a letter to the Kano anti-corruption commission on August 14.
The CCB asked for Mr Rimingado’s letter of appointment, payslips from July 2020 to 2023 and records of service.
The feud between the two men started in 2021 when Governor Ganduje suspended Rimingado from the agency for unclear reasons. Rimingado claimed he was investigating dubious contracts that the governor’s family was involved in.
Mr Rimingado was fired by Mr Ganduje in January 2023, two years after his suspension. He contested the decision in court and ultimately won. Despite the court order to reinstate him, Mr Ganduje refused until the new governor complied after the March polls.
In May, the Kano anti-corruption boss revealed that forensic analysis of the viral video showing ex-governor Ganduje pocketing dollar bills — presumably bribe — found that it was indeed genuine and not doctored.
Mr Rimingado, who describes himself as a passionate anti-corruption advocate, said he had received numerous calls to probe the dollar video, which had been a constant source of shame and embarrassment to Kano state, and tarnished the state’s reputation within and outside the country.
The anti-corruption boss, upon his reinstatement, swiftly uncovered billions of state funds allegedly looted by Bala Inuwa Muhammed and his family — strong allies of Mr Ganduje — in Kano State Agricultural Supply Company (KASCO).
The matter is already in court where Mr Inuwa was charged with diverting N3.3 billion from KASCO account to his personal account and his son, Bala Inuwa Muhammad Jr’s account, “without any justifiable reason,” according to court filings seen by Peoples Gazette.
Other beneficiaries of the state funds were Mrs Halima Bala Inuwa, Najib Lawan Muhammad and Incorporated Trustees of Association of Compassionate Friends, all listed as 3rd to 5th defendants.
The suit, instituted by the Kano state government, is believed to be on the orders of the anti-graft boss who is now receiving heat from EFCC and CCB as payback for probing Mr Ganduje’s allies.
Because of his tight relationship with President Bola Tinubu and chairmanship role in APC, Mr Ganduje, who no longer enjoys governorship immunity, may seem untouchable, but Kano’s anti-graft agency is determined to pluck out his corrupt allies considered low-hanging fruits.
The abrupt actions taken by the EFCC and CCB to start an investigation into Mr Rimingado barely three months after his reinstatement are stoking fears that the agencies were no longer independent and have turned into pawns and tools of oppression in the hands of whoever occupies the presidency.
