Court dismisses Ganduje’s objection, paves way for bribery trial

A Kano State High Court has rejected a bid by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, to stop his trial over alleged bribery and corruption.

Delivering the ruling on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, Justice Amina Adamu-Aliyu dismissed Ganduje’s application challenging the court’s jurisdiction, declaring it lacked merit.

Ganduje, a former governor of Kano State, is facing an 11-count charge alongside his wife, Hafsat Umar, and six others.

The charges include bribery, conspiracy, misappropriation, and diversion of public funds running into billions of naira.

The co-defendants are Abubakar Bawuro, Umar Abdullahi Umar, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari Textiles Limited, and Lasage General Enterprises Limited.

The charges were filed by the Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-Corruption Commission on May 13, 2024.

In her ruling, Justice Adamu-Aliyu affirmed the agency’s legal authority to investigate and prosecute criminal matters, emphasizing that investigative powers are not limited to the police.

She ruled that the case was properly filed and competent to proceed to trial, even in the absence of Ganduje and other defendants.

The court also issued a summons to Lamash Properties Limited, the sixth defendant, and adjourned the case to July 30 and 31, 2025, for hearing.

The Star