From Desmond Mgboh, Kano
Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu of the Kano State High Court, yesterday, declined to issue a warrant of arrest against the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, and his co-defendants in an alleged corruption case filed against them by the state government.
The court, however, agreed with the prosecution to enter a plea of not guilty against the defendants in the case, irrespective of whether they were represented in court or not. Justice Aliyu then adjourned the case to October 23 and 24, 2024 for hearing of the preliminary objection raised by the counsel to the sixth defendant, Nuremi Jimoh, SAN, and for the hearing of the case.
Earlier, when the case resumed, yesterday, the prosecution had informed the court that, in line with its previous ruling, they had served all the unrepresented defendants by substituted service.
He, however, regretted that despite the substituted service, none of them, apart from the sixth defendant, was in court or was represented by a counsel. The prosecution, therefore, urged the court to proceed with the case as well as to enter a plea of not guilty on their behalf. He also prayed the court to issue a bench warrant for the arrest of the National Chairman of the APC and his co -defendants.
The counsel for the sixth defendant, Nuremi Jimoh, SAN, in his submission, however, opposed the applications of the prosecution, even as he notified the court of his pending application at the court of appeal, challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case.
The Kano State government had dragged the former governor, his wife, Hafsat Umar, and his son, Umar Abdullahi, to the court on an eight count charge of misappropriation and diversion of public funds during his eight-year tenure. Ganduje’s co defendants also included Abubakar Bawuro, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited and Lasage General Enterprises Limited.