The embattled National Chairman of the All Progress Congress (APC), Abdullahi Umar Granduje may soon go the way of his predecessor, now Senator Adams Oshimohole who was ousted as APC Chair soon after Muhammdu Buhari become president due to his (Oshniomhole) suspension from the party by his Ward Executives over sundry allegations, Granduje now faces series of suspension from his ward in Kano State, how he wriggles out of the festering crisis amid presidency’s silence remains an endless debate
By Matthew Obinnakwere
The protracted crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State appears to have put its major victim, the embattled National Chairman of the party Abdullahi Ganduje, in a hot soup, Ganduje, the immediate past governor of Kano State has been losing sleep over severe headache brought about by his suspension from the APC by factions of his Ward Executives who have been alleged to be loyal to his arch enemies, former governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and the sitting governor, Abba Yusuf. However, the headache that is cracking Granduje’s skull is said to be the silence of the presidency, especially President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who has inexplicably failed to show any special interest in the saga.
Penultimate week, the Executive Council of the APC in Ganduje Ward, Dawakin-Tofa Local Government Area (LGA) of Kano State had handed suspension to the APC Chairman over allegation of bribery involving $413,000 and N1.3 billion, linking Ganduje’s wife, Hafsat and his son, Umar. To legitimize the suspension, Dr Ibrahim Sa’ad had file an ex-parte motion on behalf of two executive members of Ganduje Ward APC in Dawakin-Tofa LGA, the Assistant Secretary, Laminu Sani, and Legal Adviser, Haladu Gwanjo as plaintiffs and part of the Ward Executives who suspended Ganduje, at the Kano State High Court.
In his ruling, the presiding Judge, Justice Usman Malam Na’abba, affirmed the suspension of Ganduje and ordered that he should thenceforth desist from presiding over the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling APC. Na’abba further held the prayer of the plaintiffs stopping the Kano State Working Committee of the APC from interfering with the legally and validly considered decisions of the executives of Ganduje Ward APC in the state as it regards to actions endorsed by two-third majority of the executives as provided by the APC’s Constitution.
The court ruled, “An order is hereby granted directing all parties in the suit, APC (1st), National Working Committee (2nd), Kano State Working Committee (3rd), Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje (4th), to maintain statuquo ante belum as of 15th April, 2024.
“The 1st respondent (APC) from recognizing the 4th respondent (Ganduje) as a member of APC and prohibiting the 4th respondent (Ganduje) from presiding over any affairs of the NWC and restraining the state Working Committee from interfering with the legal and valid decision of the ward executives of Ganduje Ward”. The court also adjourned the case till April 30, 2024, for hearing.
As the court order came, another faction of Ganduje Ward Executives paid a solidarity visit to the APC Chair at the party’s national secretariat, Abuja to affirm their confidence in him whereupon Ganduje referred to the faction that suspended him as imposters. In reaction to the suspension, the APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka said in a statement, “The purported suspension is the devious act of a group of impersonators of Ward officials out to cause mischief and create confusion in the otherwise peaceful Ganduje Ward chapter of party.
“The perpetrators of this criminal act are not card-carrying members of APC in the Ward but are individuals affiliated with senior officials and representatives of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP). This act procured despicable programme of political prosecution launched by the administration of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf against Ganduje, former governor of Kano State.
“The purported suspension is downright criminal, and of no effect whatsoever. The legitimate Executive Committee of the Ganduje Ward has since denounced the action, and reaffirmed Ganduje as a bonafide member of the party in the Ward, and in good standing”.
In an effort to forestall the removal of Ganduje as the APC National Chair reminiscent of the treatment of Senator Adams Oshnomhole when his Ward Executives suspend him in Edo State, leading to his ouster as the National Chair of the party, stakeholders of the APC in Ganduje Ward had quickly petitioned the Chief Justice of Nigeria/Chairman of the National Judiciary Council (NJC) over what they regarded as judiciary rascality and misconduct of Justice Na’abba in granting an ex-parte order suspending the APC National Chair.
In their petition, “We, the Executive Committee members of Ganduje Ward, Dawakin-Tofa LGA of Kano State, write to formally bring to your attention and seek intervention concerning actions of Justice Usman Malam Na’abba, presiding over Court 4 of the High Court of Kano State, in a ruling involving our party, the APC.
“The core of this petition revolves around the principle that the judiciary should not intervene in the internal affairs of a political party without clear evidence that the party’s internal mechanisms, as outlined in its constitution, have been exhausted.
“The APC’s constitution provides specific procedures for handling disputes and disciplinary actions within the party. Article 24.1(1) clearly provides for the right to fair hearing in relation to discipline of members of the party. The complaint was never served on Ganduje, and no invitation was issued to him to attend the purported disciplinary proceedings against him. The judicial intervention by Justice Na’abba pre-empts these internal processes and mechanisms, potentially overstepping judicial boundaries.”
Those who signed the petition said they are the 27 ward Executives identified as Ahmed Muhammed Ganduje, Chairman, Auwalli Musa Roba, Usanii Jibrin, Usman Abdullahi, Haruna Abdulahi, Aminu Abubakar, Yahaya Khalid Barguma and Haruna Kura among others. Ganduje has refused to go down without putting up a formidable fight though it appears President Tinubu is less concerned about the war of the absurd going on in Kano State APC. He had earlier assured his supporters at Abuja that he was not moved by the suspension.
Consequently, Ganduje had promptly approached a Federal High Court also sitting in Kano to obtain a conflicting court order which set aside his earlier suspension by his Ward Executives. Following Ganduje’s appeal, Justice A.M Liman of the Federal High Court in Kano, had ruled on Wednesday, April 17 that Ganduje’s suspension should not be implemented until the case was heard and determined.
Justice Liman had ruled that, “All the respondents, their servants, agents or privies are hereby restrained from implementing and/or giving effect to the purported decision reached during the purported emergency meeting of the alleged Executive members of APC Ganduje Ward of Dawakin-Tofa Local Government.
“That all the parties are hereby mandated to maintain status quo before the purported emergency meeting of the alleged executive members of APC Ganduje Ward, and to stay action in respect of this matter pending the hearing and determination of the substantive application.” Justice Liman, therefore, fixed April 30 for the hearing of the substantive case.
While Ganduje may have been relieved by the Federal High Court, Kano order halting his suspension, yet his headache is far from being over as another faction-a third of its kind-of the APC Executive Committee in the Ganduje Ward, Dawakin- Tofa LGA, Kano State, emerged on Sunday, April 21, 2024, to slam fresh suspension on the APC National Chair. The latest faction of the Ganduje Ward Executive Council of the APC also claimed that they are the legitimate Ward Executive Committee who were elected since July 31, 2021.
Addressing a media conference in Kano, the Secretary of the third faction, Ja’afar Adamu Ganduje who spoke on behalf of the rest members, said the Ward Executives suspended Ganduje because of his alleged anti-party activities which led to division, as well as failure of the party in the state in the last governorship election.
According to Adamu, “We are the authentic executives of Ganduje Ward and we have passed a vote of no confidence and imposed a new suspension on Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje for series of reasons.
“First, we have suspended Dr. Ganduje’s membership for creating internal conflict among party members at the Ward level. Another major reason the authentic executives resolved to suspend Ganduje is the issue of anti-party activities he generated during the 2023 elections which resulted to the party’s failure in the state”.
The faction further claimed that the first two factions-one that suspended Ganduje and the other which absolved him of blame-were fake Ward Executives and impostors thrown up by Ganduje himself. Adamu said his faction would take legal action against those other two factions.
In a quick reaction, Chief Oliver Okpala, the senior Special Assistant to Ganduje on Public Enlightenment, said the third faction must be sanctioned for showing contempt to court order. Okpala said, “It is the height of rascality and disdain to the Nigerian Judiciary authority for the privies of defendant in the matter between Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje Vs Haladu Gwanjo & 13 others to mischievously hide under the canopy of a break-away faction to make comments against the chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Dr. Ganduje.
“This is like the hiding of an Ostrich, where the head is hidden inside a hole, but the entire body is exposed.
“It is laughable, although it is seriously contemptuous, as such a bunch of people who are known agents and privies of the defendants in the suit No. FHCKNCS 122 2024, are risking jail terms for going against a court order.
“When the court binds a group of people, their agents, servants or privies, to maintain status quo, the court knows why, and had contemplated that some mischief makers could try to hide under another canopy to flout its orders.
“The interesting thing is that, there was nothing like a faction of the Ward Executives prior to the court order, meaning that they all came to court as one, and were all bound by the court order.”
Since the Ganduje saga escalated, many political pundits have been weighing in on the pros and cons of the crisis. Many said Tinubu made a serious mistake in allowing Ganduje to be made the National Chairman of the APC. They hinged their argument on the reason that a man, Ganduje, who is weighed down by many corruption allegations in his home state of Kano, was the least qualified to be the face or image of a ruling party. They insist that Ganduje’s chairmanship has diminished the APC’s credibility.
Other political pundits have alleged that Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano State and its sitting governor, Yusuf are behind the travails of Ganduje. They alleged that Kwankwaso is waging a proxy war against Ganduje for political reasons. Recall that governor Yusuf administration has been investigating Ganduje since he took over from the latter last year.
But Maxwell Opara, a lawyer, has accused the two High Court Judges who gave conflicting orders on the saga as trying to set Kano State on the part of crisis. He accused them of meddling in the APC’s internal affairs for pecuniary reasons. Opara also said Tinubu’s silence on the saga was suspect as that could mean the President and the national leader of APC may be favouring the ouster of Ganduje as the APC Chair.
Opara emphasized that since Tinunbu had failed to call the warring factions to order, Ganduje should be careful how he handles his suspension because the president many want him out of the way.
