Kano Governor Vows to Sign Death Warrant Of Mosque Bombing Suspect

Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State has revealed that last Wednesday’s bombing of a mosque at Gadan village, Gezawa Local Government Area of the state was neither extremism nor politically motivated. Directing that the mastermind of the bombing be prosecuted before the Shariah court, the governor said that investigation had revealed that the attack was occasioned by family squabbles over inheritance. Yusuf made this disclosure on Sunday when he visited injured victims at the Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital in Kano after he returned from Abuja on official visit. He noted that the death toll in the incident had risen to 15, and vowed that he would not hesitate to sign the death warrant if the court found the 38-year-old guilty and sentenced him to death. Recall that Abubakar threw a locally-made bomb at the mosque while worshippers were inside observing the early morning prayers. Speaking during the visit, Yusuf said, “Whatever the court decides, we will ensure that the victims of the Gadan village arson get justice and if it condemns him to death after finding him guilty, we will not hesitate to sign the death warrant.” He added, “For the avoidance of any doubt, the incendiarism that led to the death of 15 out of the 24 victims was neither politically motivated nor a terrorist attack on the residents of the state.” The governor donated N100,000 to each of the victims.

Kano Governor Sacks 3000 Illegally Employed Workers

The Kano State government has taken decisive action by terminating the employment of 3,234 individuals who were allegedly hired improperly during the tenure of former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje. In a press briefing held on Friday, the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Abudullahi Baffa Bichi, revealed that these individuals were not deemed eligible for employment within the Kano State Civil Service. This action stems from the government’s commitment to implementing the findings of a committee tasked with scrutinizing and verifying employment procedures conducted under the previous administration. Bichi highlighted various irregularities, citing instances where appointments were not aligned with the 2023 Approved Budget, individuals were employed without applying or expressing interest, and many appointments lacked proper screening and interview processes.  Additionally, cases of suspected or forged certificates were discovered among the employed, and non-indigenous individuals were reportedly hired despite qualified indigenous individuals being available. To handle the substantial number of cases, the committee divided into three panels to scrutinize 12,566 individuals, deviating from the initial count of 10,800. However, in light of the committee’s assessment and recommendations, the Governor approved the reinstatement of 9,332 staff across 51 Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) who were deemed eligible through the verification process. Moving forward, the SSG emphasized the need for further interviews for those individuals found with offers of appointments but not on the payroll, appropriate placement of staff based on qualifications and vacancies, and deploying eligible staff to relevant MDAs for effective utilization.