LeadersNG last week launched an independent investigation into the allegations made by an online blogger about the Kano State governor,Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and we can report that there are new developments surrounding the situation in Kano. Our investigations reveal that the governor collects a 30% cut from all contractors handling various projects in the state. Government sources told us that the governor collects kickbacks for ongoing and completed projects alike.
You will recall that an online blogger Mr. Jafar Jafar had alleged that the embattled governor collected $5million bribe from an unnamed contractor and later provided two separate video evidence after rebuttal by the state government. We can confirm that aside the allegation which was made in a widely-shared video clip on social media of bribe collection from a contractor by the governor, other contractors who spoke to LeadersNG said the governor collects 30% cut from all awarded contracts.
Three engineering companies that specialize in road constructions in the state confirmed that they all pay 30% cut in bribes to the governor. One of the CEO of the companies said it is a known fact among all contractors working in the state. He said for them to even get monies owed by the previous government, they had to also pay 30% of all money owed by the state government as bribe to the governor.
Another major contractor that does supplies in the state told our reporter that “The governor physically collects all the kickbacks from contractors and prefers it in dollars and as such everything you have heard is the truth. Even his Commissioners tell us Oga likes dollars.”
A source close to the governor told our reporter that the governor runs the state like a sole administrator and takes all decisions without consultation with relevant agencies and ministries. He said contracts that should be handled by various ministries are directly handled by the governor and he deals directly with the contractors. He further added that the commissioners and aides like him have no money or access to state funds.
A member of the State House of Assembly who also spoke to us on condition of anonymity said “everyone in government here knows the governor collects bribes on all contracts. We know all the contractors. Many of them are our friends and they tell us their dealings with the governor. Nothing is secret about all these things. Ganduje is too greedy. The reason why he has ran into trouble is because he does not trust anyone. You can imagine a governor collecting bribe by himself. He doesn’t trust anyone around him to collect the bribes for him. That’s why his face is all over the Internet.”
The governor, 69, had said he was not moved by the revelation of him collecting bribe saying medical personnel at Shiekh Jidda General Hospital in Kano city, certified that his blood pressure was within normal range. Even in the face of glaring evidence, Ganduje described the revelation as ineffective blackmail.
Although he had threatened legal actions against Mr. Jafar, this did not stop him from releasing a second video clip in which the governor was seen collecting bundles of dollars from anonymous persons.
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