Civil society organisations (CSOs) in the country have petitioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, imploring him to call Kano State governor, Abba Yusuf, to order over what they termed the ongoing wave of reckless demolitions in the state.
The CSOs under the aegis of Coalition for Good Governance and Change Initiative, told the President that the new governor was busy pulling down multi-million Naira structures without recourse to due process.
Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday in Abuja, national coordinator of the Coalition, Comrade Okpokwu Ogenyi, noted that Governor Yusuf has embarked of reckless demolitions instead of addressing the immediate needs of the Kano people.
According to him, it is a sad era in the history of Kano State that a government saddled with the responsibility of protecting lives and property is the one demolishing structures legally built by citizens and investors with their hard-earned resources.
Decrying what it described as untold pain inflicted on the people, the coalition handed a 72-hour ultimatum to the governor to retrace his steps or risk a class action.
Disclosing what is contained in the petition to the president, Ogenyi said: “We believe that the situation in Kano if not halted is capable of causing unrest which may affect the whole country. Something must be done urgently to stop this madness.
“We call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to quickly intervene and call Governor Abba Yusuf to order to stop further illegal demolition of the property leading to loss of lives in the State.
“We also call on the International Community to come to the aid of the people and investors in Kano State by prevailing on Governor Abba Yusuf to stop the demolition forthwith. Mr Kwankwaso who is the leader of the Governor is silent over the inhuman activities currently ongoing in Kano State, a bad signal that he is also part of the demolition plot. If he is not, we call on him to exonerate himself by joining religious leaders and other prominent Nigerians in condemning the evil act.
“We are making this appeal in the national interest because we know the implications of any possible crisis in Kano state is the most populous state in Nigeria. If the misgovernance of Governor Abba Yusuf leads to a crisis in Kano state (God forbid) it will affect negatively the whole of Nigeria. That is why we are calling on voices of reason now, not only to call Governor Abba Yusuf to order but to prevail on him to quickly reverse his actions by calling all the affected persons to a roundtable for an amicable resolution.
“We hereby give Governor Yusuf a 72-hour ultimatum to retrace his steps and stop the ongoing demolitions, call the affected persons and group for proper compensation or face legal action. We shall continue to engage the Kano State Government until justice is served.
“The government demolished a three-storey Plaza consisting of ninety shops, the five-star Daula Hotel almost completed with ninety rooms worth over 10 billion Naira. As a result of this inhuman activity, thousands of people have been displaced with the government paying no attention to the suffering of the people. In fact, the government has vowed to cause more harm to the people by continuing the demolition exercise.
“We have watched with keen interest, the level of destruction done in Kano metropolis including the loss of over twenty lives of innocent Nigerians who died during the process of the unlawful demolition of property in the state. The government claimed that two persons died but our team members who were in Kano said over twenty persons have died which is a serious concern for the human rights community.”
The CSOs expressed worry over the trend of successive governors destroying legacies of the previous administrations in a quest to slight the out-gone Governor either based on hatred or fear of popularity among others.
Citing Imo State where former Governor Emeka Ihedoha had maliciously demolished edifices built by the administration of Rochas Okorocha, the CSOs also noted that the governor of Niger State is also demolishing property perceived to owned by his predecessor.
Noting that is a show of shame, tye coalition said, “The last three weeks have become a hell in Kano State with a cry in almost every home within the metropolis. Governor Abba Yusuf has become a shadow of good governance, even his supporters are no longer proud of him because of his inhuman action against the people of Kano State.
“How can a Governor of less than a week old demolish property worth over N206 billion naira without studying the process talk more about compensation for the property owners? The Government claimed that the previous administration allocated government lands to individuals and corporate bodies. Is it, not the responsibility of the government to allocate land? The Land Use Act says individuals own no land, all land belongs to the government. What is the offence of the citizens who genuinely acquired land from the government?
“If it is true that the previous administration of Kano State illegally allocated these plots, why not call the immediate past Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje to answer questions and if possible, charge him to court instead of destroying property built by innocent Nigerians who applied for land and were allocated same by the state government. Is government no longer a continuous process? Most of these individuals got loans and invested it in Kano only to face this kind of devastating situation. How do you expect them to survive?”
