After a public show, the Kano State Anti-Corruption and Public Complaints Commission, has announced its withdrawal from the case of alleged diversion of a large chunk of palliatives by some persons in the State.
The Source reports that earlier in the week, the Commission had gleefully informed that it had launched an inquest into the actual circumstances surrounding an alleged diversion of over 16,000 bags of Federal Government branded rice and other items to a private warehouse in the commercial hub of the North.
The Agency said it arrested some persons re-bagging the items meant for the people of the state to be resold at the open markets .
The rice and other items being re-bagged all bear the image of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, thus strongly suggesting that they may have formed part of several palliatives advanced to Kano people by the Federal Government, the Commission stated
But at a Media briefing on Friday, November 29, 2024 in Kano, Muhyi Magaji Rimigado the Commission’s Chairman, said the items after all belonged to some philanthropists.
According to him, contrary to its initial suspicion suggesting that the items may have been diverted from the Federal Government palliatives for the State ,it has been able to establish that they actually belonged to individuals.
He, subsequently, announced the official withdrawal of the Commission from the investigation processes earlier commenced.
He further noted that the anti-graft agency has to back out ,since the suspected owner of the items -the Federal Government of Nigeria has failed to lay claims.
“The Commission has determined that the rice is owned by an individual . Since the Federal Government has not laid any claim to the consignment ,we are left with no choice ,but to withdraw from the case.
“It is true that the re-bagging was done using sacks with the President’s picture, and the words: “not for sale”, but as an anti-graft agency, we cannot proceed further now that an individual has provided proof of ownership and no official complaint has come from the Federal Government ” Rimigado emphasized.
The Commission’s Chairman noted that although its mandate is to, among other things, ensure transparency and accountability in the governance space, it will not over shoot its legal limit.
“Our duty is to investigate and prosecute cases within our jurisdiction. But without any Federal Government claims over the rice, we are legally restrained from pursuing the matter further” he stated.
But the sudden back tracking of the Commission though anchored on some legal reasons appear to be clearly against the grain of pervading public opinion.
Not a few had been eagerly waiting for the outcome of the inquest in the face of alleged spate of diversion of palliatives that have been rocking the State since early this year .
Both the opposition All Progressive Congress, APC, and the ruling New Nigeria Peoples Party NNPP have, at different times, raised concerns about diversions of palliative materials by some highly placed Party and Kano state Government officials.
Not a few believe that the all barking, but not biting anti-corruption Commission may have been stampeded out of the investigation to, once again, shield some perceived entrenched interests that may have cut across party lines.
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