As Kaduna Assembly Grills former Aides of Ex-Gov El-Rufai…

John Shiklam writes that some serving and former officials of Ex-Governor El-Rufai administration have been grilled by the ad-hoc committee set up by the Kaduna State House of Assembly to probe contractual and financial dealings under the former governor.

The ad-hoc committee set up by the Kaduna State House of Assembly  to investigate the eight-year administration of ex- governor Nasir El-Rufai, has commenced sitting.

Some serving and former government officials had been summoned by the committee.

The committee was set up by the house, following complaints by the Kaduna State governor, Senator Uba Sani that, he inherited huge debts from his predecessor and he was finding it difficult to pay salaries because a huge chunk of the state’s federal allocation was being deducted to service debts.

Sani had at a town hall meeting with stakeholders in Kaduna on March 30, 2024, said he inherited $587 million foreign debts, N85 billion local debts, and N115 billion contractual liabilities from the El-Rufai administration.

The committee is probing contract awards and execution, loans and sale of government property, among others under the El-Rufai administration.

Among those summoned before the committee were, Thomas Gyang, former Commissioner of Public Works and Infrastructure; Ja’afaru Sani, former commissioner of Education; Dr. Manzo  Maigari, former Agric commissioner (currently political adviser to Uba Sani); Balarabe Aliyu, former Administrator, Zaria Metropolitan Authority; Phoebe Sukai, former Administrator, Kafanchan Metropolitan Authority and Mohammed Magaji, former Managing Director, Kaduna State Roads Agency (KADRA).

Some of the serving government officials  were said to have been interrogated by the lawmakers at the House of Assembly Complex, for several hours between 11:am when the session began and 8:00 pm when it ended.

Chairman of the Committee, Hon Henry Danjuma, representing Kagarko state constituency, said in an interview that the committee deemed it fit to summon both present and former officials of government just to assist the committee in carrying out its mandate of unravelling the circumstances surrounding loans, contractual obligations under the El-Rufai’s administration.

Danjuma, who is also the Deputy Speaker,  said more officials would be summoned by the committee if the need arises.

He added that this will depend largely on the evidence made available before the committee by officials who had so far  testified.

Danjuma said, so far, the session had  been rewarding, adding that discussions between the committee and those who testified, had been honest and frank.

He said the job of the committee was just to unravel whether there were any discrepancies in the loans and contractual obligations of the immediate-past administration in the state.

“We have invited some key persons that we deem it necessary to have them interviewed so that we can get testimonies to aid us to get to an appropriate conclusion. So that we can give a justified report of our committee.

“Depending on the evidence we heard from those before us, there might be people that may be invited based on the testimonies that we are receiving from those that have been invited. I am happy that there have been honest discussions between us and those that appeared before us.

“The Adhoc Committee is to investigate financial dealings that have to do with loans and contractual obligations by the Kaduna State Government from 29 May 2015 to May 29, 2023,  to unravel whether there were any misdemeanours”, Danjuma said.

The finance ministry had earlier been summoned to provide the ad-hoc committee with memorandum (official memo) and relevant documents detailing the total loan collected by the government between 2015 and 2023.

The committee also demanded documents regarding “The total loans collected from May 2015 to May 2023 with the approval of the Kaduna State House of Assembly, the account into which the loans were lodged and drawdowns as recorded by the Project Finance Management Unit (PFMU) and Debt Management Office (DMO).

“Relevant State Executive Council Minutes of meetings, Council’s Extract and Resolutions with regards to the loans.

“Payments and Outstanding Liabilities to contractors from May 2015 – May 2023. Report of salaries paid to staff from 2016 to 2022. Dloyd Reports on KADRIS from 2015 to 2023.

“Terms, purpose and conditions on those loans. Appropriation items related to the loans. All record of payments made to all contractors engaged by the State Government and relevant documents from May 2015 to May 2023”.

The lawmakers also asked the finance ministry to provide it with the modalities for payment of contracts, documents of all payments made to the contractors and sale of government properties, the accounts in which the proceeds were lodged and how the money was expended.

The legislators directed the finance ministry to produce 30 copies of the documents that were submitted on April 25, 2024..

The investigation has generated so much interest among residents of the state, some of whom cautioned the lawmakers to be diligent, fair, and just in carrying out their assignment.

However, there have been mixed reactions among Kaduna residents about the investigation. While some people are insinuating that the motive of the investigation is to witch-hunt El-Rufai and  rubbish his political profile, others insist that the people have the right to know how public funds are spent.

Speaking in an interview, a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) who pleaded anonymity for fear of being victimised, said Governor Uba Sani was a member of the “kitchen cabinet” of the El- Rufai administration, maintaining that it was very unfortunate that he has turned against a man who contributed a lot to whatever he has become in life today.

Governor Sani was one of those who facilitated the $350 million World Bank loan while he was in the Senate.

In fact, Senator Shehu Sani, the two other senators from Kaduna, fell apart with El-Rufai  because they rejected the loan.

He supported Uba Sani and Abdul Kwari to defeat Shehu Sani and Suleiman Hunkuyi during  the  2019 elections.

“Some people don’t know that Uba Sani and El-Rufai have come a long way! They are very close, they have worked together. For me, what is happening is political witch-hunting being sponsored to rubbish El-Rufai, but they will not succeed,” he said.

Also commenting on the issue, Mr. Waziri Ashafa, a chieftain of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on his part,  dismissed insinuations that the investigation was aimed at witch-hunting the former governor.

According to him, the people have the right to demand to know how the former governor managed state resources if they have reasons to believe that certain things were not properly done.

“Some see this as political witch-hunt. There is nothing wrong if the lawmakers feel that there is need to find out how certain things were done under El-Rufai.

“Monies held  in trust for the people should be accounted for. The people have the right to know how that money was used.

“Nobody should jump to any conclusion until the outcome of the investigation,” Ashafa said.

He urged the committee to be fair and just in carrying the investigations.

His words: “They lawmakers should not allow either political or religious sentiments to come between them. They should not allow anyone to influence their findings. The people want to know whether funds were judiciously used or not. At the end of the day, anybody found wanting should be sanctioned appropriately. People should be held accountable for their actions and inactions”, Ashafa said.

A chieftain of the APC and a former council chairman of Kaduna South LGA, Yahaya Shinko, in his reaction, urged the committee to do its job diligently to unravel the contending issues.

“The committee should carry out its responsibility diligently and the outcome should be able to unravel alot of things that people don’t know, especially,  how the former governor acquired that loan and how he expended the money”, Shinko said.

He stressed that at the end of the day, “we should expect, the executive arm, particularly anti corruption agencies to act on anybody found wanting.”

“Anyone found to have indulged in corrupt practices must not be spared,” he added.

A former Senator who represented Kaduna Central in the Ninth Senate, Shehu Sani, however, insisted that, besides inviting former commissioners, El- Rufai should also be summoned before the committee.

Writing on his verified Facebook page, Shehu  said, “Recovering Kaduna’s looted $350 million World Bank loan cannot be achieved by only inviting and interrogating the former commissioners and advisers, without inviting and interrogating the former governor to answer questions on the loan; as well as explain the whereabouts of Kaduna’s share of Paris refund, excess crude funds, stamp duties funds, ecological funds and the billions in loans collected from the Central Bank and Domestic Banks.”

He added that, “All those contractors and useless consultants who took money and ran away and all those who benefited from the sharing of Kaduna state properties and are still enjoying themselves, should count themselves  lucky that it’s not Comrade Shehu Sani (that is in power). I don’t have time for playing games.”