Will Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State succumb to pressure to hand over his former boss and political mentor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai to anti-graft bodies over alleged misappropriation of N423 billion state fund? Northern Bureau Chief, MUHAMMAD SABIU examines the complexities of the probe embarked upon by the Kaduna State House of Assembly at the instance of the state government and its implications for the ruling All Progressives Congress-led state government.
IN recent time, the probe against the administration of the immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai has elicited more than a passionate interest from members of the public within and outside the shores of Nigeria. This is so because the probe was instituted by his political associate, ‘god son,’ and the incumbent governor, Senator Uba Sani. After serving as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and head of the Bureau for Public Enterprises and Privatisation (BPE) before becoming governor, the profile of El-Rufai rose astronomically such that he became a leading light in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Thus, for over two decades, many people have seen him as one man who speaks truth to power.
However, the recent report of the ad-hoc committee set up by the State House of Assembly to investigate his eight years in office as governor of Kaduna over alleged misappropriation of over N400 billion has stirred huge controversy. It polarized the political circle in the state in particular, with the issue becoming the main subject of public discourse and debate. The issue marked a dramatic twist to the relationship between the godfather and the godson and to the chagrin of most of their admirers, allies and supporters, as well as APC sympathizers.
Governor Uba Sani and his predecessor, El-rufai have been political allies for decades. At most public fora, the governor had said the former minister was his boss, not his friend. He had also praised him for his leadership role, describing his predecessor as a worthy mentor and boss. Their relationship reportedly dated back to more than 20 years when the governor served as one of the Special Assistants to El-Rufai at the time he was the FCT minister. It was learnt that when former President Olusegun Obasanjo embarked on a search for replacement for Chief Femi Fani-Kayode and El-rufai recommended Uba Sani. The president eventually appointed Uba Sani as his Special Assistant on Public Affairs. Since then, the latter has remained a committed loyalist to his mentor (El-rufai). He was part of El-rufai’s political dynasty which played an important role in the bid by his boss (El-rufai) to become governor in 2015 and secure re-election in 2019. During the period, it was reported that Governor Uba Sani helped in stabilising Elrufai’s government and in turn, he was appointed as his Special Adviser on Political Affairs to the then governor.
During its first term, the El-rufai administration wanted to secure $350 million World Bank loan, but the government reportedly could not get the necessary support from Senator Shehu Sani, who was then representing Kaduna Central at the Senate. So, his administration waited for the 2019 elections to pay back Senator Shehu Sani. At the countdown to that elections, El-rufai and the senator were not on the same page, so Shehu Sani lost his bid to Uba Sani as the senator for the district. El-rufai stood his ground to ensure that Uba Sani got the party’s ticket and subsequently won the seat. As a member of the ninth Senate, it was said Elrufai also influenced the appointment of Governor Uba Sani as Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking and Finance, a position that gave him the advantage to help in facilitating the process for the $350 million World Bank loan sought by the El-Rufai administration.
It was also gathered that when Uba Sani got to the Senate, he appointed El-rufai’s son, Bello as one of his senior aides. It was said that Governor Sani was instrumental to Bello becoming a member of the House of Representatives representing Kaduna North. The relationship between the two political leaders also extended to their families. It was reported that El-rufai’s wives also supported the choice of Uba Sani as their husband’s successor.
World Bank loan
Some major political gladiators from the state who craved for anonymity claimed that the cordial relationship between the governor and his predecessor buoyed the process for the World Bank loan to Kaduna State. The lobbyists made sure that the loan was given priority from the period the National Assembly was inaugurated. “At the inception of the 9th Assembly, the governor (Uba Sani) worked assiduously with other lawmakers in the state to secure the $350m loan on behalf of the state government, a concerned APC member, who pleaded for anonymity said. Also, in one of the video clips trending in the social media, at that time, the governor was heard saying, he was convinced that El-rufai meant well for seeking the loan. He was quoted to have said if the former government of El-rufai failed to utilise the funds as planned, he should be held responsible. This was the level of trust that existed between El-rufai and Governor Uba Sani. Thus, the urban renewal project kicked off in the state in earnest. Many developmental projects like roads construction, construction of classrooms, flyovers, Kawo bridge, housing estates, refurnishing of office complexes, among others, were executed. But the execution of the project was not without a price as many people lost their properties with some compensations paid. However, others claimed they were not paid compensation.
Picking a successor
As the tenure of El-rufai as the chief executive of Kaduna approached, some members of his kitchen cabinet began to indicate their interest to succeed him. Senator Uba Sani, Hadiza Balarabe and Sani Dattijo were among the forerunners. Others, who were not members of the inner caucus but declared their individual interest included: Bashir Abubakar and Sani Sha’aban. But the emergence of Uba Sani as the preferred choice did not go down well with some of the other aspirants, especially Shaaban who challenged the consensus arrangement of the APC leadership. El-rufai, in an interaction with state-owned media outfits, had announced Uba Sani as the man that will fly the party’s flag based on a consensus arrangement. He had said Dattijo, one of the aspirants, would vie for Kaduna Central senatorial ticket, while the state deputy Governor, Hadiza Balarabe, will be Uba Sani’s running mate. After a series of consultations and intense horse trading, Uba Sani contested the APC primary with Bashir Abubakar and Sani Sha’aban, beating his challengers to clinch the ticket.
Road to Government House
The results of presidential, senatorial, House of Representatives elections in Kaduna turned out to be a blessing to APC. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) swept the presidential election and the National Assembly elections. It became apparently that the APC had to tighten its belt to win the gubernatorial election. The one-week grace, according to a party stalwart, who would not want to be quoted, gave the APC victory at the gubernatorial poll. He said: “The postponement of the gubernatorial election, to say the least, gave the party the impetus and ample opportunity to re-strategise and plan to win the gubernatorial election.” He explained that it was made possible because of some far -reaching decisions taken by Elrufai. He said: “When Elrufai saw the outcome of the first round of election results, he met with his team to analyse them and re-strategize. One of the decisions, the source said, was to summon all the village heads and district heads to of the consequences of losing their wards to the opposition. “He (El-rufai) also approached religious leaders to convince their faithful to vote for his party,” the source claimed. “Women were mobilised too and given incentives. At the end of it, the formula worked for the our party and Senator Uba Sani emerged as the governor,” the source added.
Sani’s one year in office
Governor Uba Sani was unambiguous in his victory speech on how he intends to run his government. He said his administration would not discriminate against anyone based on his faith, tribe and belief. He followed his pronouncement with actions by creating a committee of lders, with Alhaji Mustapha Abubakar, as chairman and Major General Zamani Lekwot (retd) as co-chairman. He meets with the committee periodically to brief them on the state of affairs, as well as to listen to them on areas he needs to adjust or improve.
Besides, the governor created a committee comprising prominent religious leaders drawn from board and from the two dominant faiths. Like the elders’ committee, he meets with the members periodically where they discuss areas of mutual coexistence.
According to him, the two committees are critical to the sustenance of peace in the state. Within one year in office, he has reached out to different segments of society, including the organised labour, Southern Kaduna Christian leaders, students, women groups and the civil society, just as his leadership impact is also being felt, especially by people in the rural areas. Therefore, in March during a town hall meeting with stakeholders, the governor, presented his scorecard to the people of the state. He told the audience that despite the achievements, the debt he inherited was a torn in the flesh of his government because after the monthly statutory allocation, he could hardly pay the salaries of Kaduna workers.
According to him, he inherited a debt of N85 billion, $587bn and 115 contractual liabilities. The governor said that despite the debt burden, his government did not borrow a dime. However, he lamented that due to the rise in the foreign exchange rate. he was paying back almost triple of what was borrowed by the past administration. He claimed that the N7 billion out of the N10 billion the state is receiving from the Federal Allocation is used to service the debt, adding that the N3 billion left is not enough to pay the salaries of workers as the state monthly wage bill stands at N5.2bn. But he assured the citizens that despite the huge debt, his government would continue to provide services in key areas like safety and security; housing, education, healthcare support to micro small medium, as well as investment in human capital development among others.
Probe report
After the debt burden was made known by the governor, the state House of Assembly, at a plenary, on April 16, set up a 13-man committee to probe the finances ,loans, and projects executed between 2015 and 2019. At the end of its sittings, the committee headed by a member of the assembly, Henry Zacharia, while presenting its findings during the plenary in June, reported that most of the loans obtained during the period under investigation, were not used for the purpose for which they were obtained, while the committee alleged that in some cases, due process was not followed. Receiving the report, the Speaker of the Assembly, Yusuf Liman alleged that a total of N423bn was unaccounted for. The committee then recommended the investigation and prosecution of Elrufai and some of his senior aides indicted by anti-graft bodies.
Elrufai kicks
In a swift reaction, Elrufai kicked against the report by the adhoc committee. Speaking through his media aide Muyiwa Adekeye, the former governor described the report as scandalous. He said: “We are aware of news that the Kaduna State House of Assembly has adopted the report of adhoc committee it asked to probe the Elrufai government. We have not been availed a copy of the report to which we would respond robustly when we obtain it. We also affirm the integrity of the Elrufai government and dismiss the scandalous claims being aired as the report of the committee,” the statement maintained.
Similarly, some commissioners that served in the administration of El-Rufai also rejected the report of the Assembly. In a statement released in Abuja, and jointly signed by Jaafaru Sani, Hafsat Baba, Umma Aboki and Bashir Saidu all former commissioners on behalf of other commissioners, they vehemently rejected the report of the adhoc committee. They claimed that the report was the “Outcome of a process motivated by malice and conducted with patent unfairness irredeemably riddled with falsehood, predetermined conclusions and mis-presentation.” They contended that, “in spite of repeated requests and inquiries from us and various colleagues of ours, no certified true copy of this report has been released to any persons who were mentioned in the report or who testified before the Adhoc committee in response to its summons or who were indicted. They argued that some of them were never summoned or heard by the ad-hoc committee. They added: “We affirm the integrity of the Administration in which we served the people of Kaduna- state between May 2015 and May 2023 under the leadership of Nasir Elrufai.” They concluded at the appropriate time when they get the report they will reply item by item for people to see.
Meanwhile, some pundits in the state have cautioned the governor to tread softly on the House of Assembly report citing his closeness with Elrufai, as well as being a member of the Elrufai kitchen cabinet. They said the governor should not succumb to the possible antics of certain external forces that might want to cause further crisis in the APC. But some elements are said to be pushing that the matter should not be swept under the carpet. But, the governor is said to be at a crossroads on the whole issue.
From last week it was gathered some elements have been mounting pressure on the government to involve the anti-graft bodies in resolving the controversy. They argued that the governor has a moral duty to do the needful on the matter. One of such citizens is Senator Shehu Sani. He said in a statement on his verified X handle that, “The Kaduna Assembly has done a good job. I wish to congratulate them…For anyone who cared to go through that published report. Kaduna was a victim of two types of banditry, the one in our Forest and the one in the Government House.”
Also, the former chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kaduna State chapter, Reverend Joseph Hayab while reacting to the report said it all bordered on lack of conscience by the political leadership. He said: “On the account of the charge of preliminary findings on the dealing by Elrufai’s led government, I strongly appeal to Kaduna State citizens to unite and insist that justice is served saying, “Anyone who fails to account for the collective fortunes of the citizenry should be compelled by law to refund the funds side-tracked or face the consequences prescribed by law.” Also, the president of a pressure group called the K-23 Movement, Comrade Bashir Bello and the secretary general, Idris Musa, called on the anti-corruption agencies, civil society organisations and well-meaning Nigerians to stand up against alleged corruption and demand accountability to the people of Kaduna State in the interest of posterity.