Alleged $5m bribery video: Court dismisses case against Ganduje

Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

A Federal High Court in Kano State on Monday dismissed a suit by a Kano-based lawyer, Bulama Bukarti, seeking an order of the court to compel the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate Governor Abdullahii Umar Ganduje for allegedly receiving kickback from a contractor.

The judge dismissed the case for lack of evidence.

Bulama had approached the court seeking an order to compel the EFCC to provide report of its forensic investigation analysis of the video allegedly showing Ganduje receiving kickback from an unknown contractor.

However, Justice Egwuatu ruled that even though where the affidavit deposed to is not countered, it is deemed admitted that the evidence therein must be cogent and verifiable.

Read Also: Ganduje bags Kano NUJ award

The judge averred that the provisions of Freedom of Information Act 2011 required that information requested must be a public record and in the custody of the instruction of the organisation so requested from.

Justice Egwuatu dismissed the case on the grounds that the evidence before the court had not shown that the EFCC had the record of the forensic analysis of the bribery video allegations, noting that the report ought to be given to the House of Assembly ad-hoc committee set up to investigate the matter.

In 2018, a serial video clip released by a social media caught Governor Ganduje receiving $5 million kickback from a contractor handling one of the state’s capital projects.