Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, Presidential Candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), has denied the allegations that ex-Governor Abdullahi Ganduje levelled against him.
While briefing State House correspondents earlier on Friday, Ganduje said Kwankwaso was orchestrating the ongoing demolitions in Kano.
He said his predecessor felt he could target him through the demolitions, but innocent citizens, including some NNPP members, were at the receiving end.
But speaking after meeting with President Bola Tinubu at Aso Rock, Kwankwaso accused Ganduje of telling lies.
Demolition: I could have slapped Kwankwaso at Aso Rock – Ganduje
Tinubu, Kwankwaso meet at Aso Rock
He alleged that the governor converted government’s properties to personal use and sold some to his family members and cronies.
He said the governor carried out the demolition exercise in fulfillment of his campaign promise to “restore” the urban development masterplan of the city and not a vendetta against the past administration of Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
Kwankwaso said plots of land belonging to University, Hajj Camp, Race Course and Eid Ground that were sold must have a place in Kano.
He said most of the people making noise were beneficiaries who were forewarned with no certificates.
He said Ganduje who stopped him from entering Kano for three and a half years sold some of the properties to himself and his family members.
Asked if he was satisfied with the president’s intervention, he said: “The President was shocked. Are you not shocked that somebody will sell University? Are you not shocked that he demolished the only university? Daula Hotel, for those of you who are in Kano, you know the old Daula, demolished to zero and that is a faculty under the university of science and technology. He demolished that one. Are you not shocked?
“The President was shocked. He didn’t know. He even mentioned that he talked to somebody to go and find out for him. But when I told him, I said you are a Muslim, very soon you are going for Sallah. How can you go under that circumstance and pray in that place? And even the Triumph place he is talking about, you are journalists. You should be angry because that’s your constituency, he demolished completely and put shops everywhere.”
“You see the governor is doing what we campaigned with. I wanted to be president, I campaigned also. And I went to Kano and told them that these places, schools, in fact most of our schools in Kano were being encroached. And it is our policy to make sure that they encroached are returned to them. We will not allow anybody either local government chairman, or Governor to go sell.”
Meanwhile, Kwankwaso also said he discussed issues of politics and governance with the president who displayed experience and strategies.
He disclosed that the issue of a ministerial post for him in the Tinubu administration came up during his discussion with the president, adding that he was open to work with the president to move the nation forward.
On the ministerial appointment, he said: “The issue came up but we are still discussing. We will see how it comes to fruition. We will be very happy to see how we can move the country forward.”
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