By Ahmad Muhammad.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate for Kano North Senatorial District, Nasiru Garo, has questioned the origin of the incumbent Senator, Barau Jibrin, saying he is not from the zone.

Garo, who spoke during his campaign tour of the district on Sunday, alleged that the Deputy President of the Senate had previously contested and won a House of Representatives seat in Tarauni Local Government, which is under Kano Central and not Kano North.

He claimed that from 1999 to 2023, Barau’s political base was outside Kano North, which is why he has not been sensitive to the needs of the people of the area.

According to him, occupying a high office in the Senate should have translated to more development for Kano North, but the reverse is the case due to lack of commitment.

He listed the abandoned Gwarzo-Dayi Federal Road, which links several agrarian communities, as a major failure of the current representation in the district.

Garo also decried the failure to rehabilitate the Ghari Dam, noting that its revival would boost dry-season farming and create jobs for thousands of youths and farmers.

“The people of this zone have been shortchanged in terms of federal projects and employment opportunities,” he said.

The NDC candidate promised to give the district purposeful representation by ensuring completion of abandoned projects, reviving key dams, and attracting federal presence to the 13 local government areas of Kano North if elected

The Kano State Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Comrade Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya, PhD has inaugurated the Kano Intellectuals Forum at the Aminu Kano College of Islamic and Legal Studies, with a charge to academics and intellectuals to deploy their knowledge, research and expertise towards addressing the socioeconomic challenges confronting the people of the state.

Inaugurating the Forum, the Commissioner said the responsibility of academic institutions goes beyond the production of graduates and the issuance of academic certificates, stressing that higher institutions have a critical role to play in generating knowledge and providing practical solutions to the challenges confronting society.

Comrade Waiya noted that academic communities possess the technical knowledge, research capacity and professional expertise required to conduct evidence-based studies and develop innovative solutions to the problems affecting their host communities.

He therefore urged members of the Kano Intellectuals Forum to see their membership as an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the development of the state by providing research-based advice, policy recommendations and technical support to government.

The Commissioner said the Forum would serve as an important platform for strengthening collaboration between the academic community and government, particularly in the areas of education, economic development, social welfare, innovation, human capital development and other sectors critical to improving the quality of life of the people.

He said the Forum has an important role to play in supporting and complementing government efforts towards improving the wellbeing of the people of Kano State.

According to him, the administration of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf has demonstrated a commitment to placing the interests and welfare of the people at the centre of its development agenda through the Kano First Agenda, adding that the intellectual community should contribute its expertise towards achieving the objectives of the initiative.

Comrade Waiya called on members of the Forum to develop practical and implementable recommendations that could assist government in formulating policies and programmes capable of producing sustainable socioeconomic and political development.

Earlier in his welcome address, the Provost of Sa’adatu Rimi University of Education Dr. Kabiru Gwarzo, explained that the Forum was designed to ensure broad and inclusive representation of the academic community across tertiary institutions in the state.

He said each tertiary institution would have four representatives drawn from different segments of the institution, including academic and non-academic staff, students and women.

Dr. Gwarzo said the inclusive composition was intended to ensure that the Forum benefits from diverse perspectives, experiences and areas of expertise in addressing issues affecting the development of Kano State.

In his remarks, the Acting Provost of Aminu Kano College of Islamic and Legal Studies, Dr. Ali Tamasi, observed that Kano’s academic institutions are endowed with highly knowledgeable and experienced professionals who have provided consultancy services to organisations and institutions in and outside the country.

He stressed the need to create opportunities for such experts to deploy their knowledge and experience towards solving local challenges and contributing to the development of Kano State.

Dr. Tamasi said the establishment of the Forum would provide a structured platform for engaging intellectuals within the state to compliment the efforts of government in formulating policies and programmes, particularly in the Kano First agenda.

He explained that the Forum would advise and support government in areas such as education, socioeconomic development, research, policy formulation and other areas which would potentially support in improving the living standards of the people.

The Acting Provost expressed optimism that the Forum would strengthen the relationship between government and tertiary institutions and promote greater utilisation of academic research and professional expertise in addressing developmental challenges.

One critical area which the Forum will focus, is dissimination of Government achievements in the Tertiary institutions, for the people to appreciate the volume of investment in the sector

The Court of Appeal sitting in Kaduna on Monday, October 5, reserved judgment in the appeal filed by former Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasiru Ahmad El-Rufai, challenging the ruling of the Kaduna State High Court that dismissed his bail application.

El-Rufai, who is being prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), had approached the Court of Appeal, asking it to overturn the High Court’s ruling and grant him bail.

Speaking to newsmen shortly after the proceedings, the ICPC lead counsel, Ayodeleji Adelukpe, said the former governor approached the Court of Appeal with an application challenging the ruling delivered by the trial court on his bail application.

“We oppose that because the bail application he is appealing against here, which is the ruling on the application, is the second one. They actually filed three before the trial judge.

“The first one was dismissed. They brought another one without showing any exceptional ground, so it was dismissed too. However, without relenting, they proceeded with another application, making it the third, which was also dismissed.

“Upon dismissal of the third application, El-Rufai decided to appeal the second application, which was the second ruling that led to this current appeal. That is why we are challenging the appeal.

“We are challenging the appeal because the trial judge who dismissed those applications was right. They failed to show any exceptional ground for why the second application should be granted.

“Despite this, they did not in any way inform the Honourable Court that they had filed the third application, which was also dismissed.

“In summary, our argument is that the appeal is unmeritorious,” he said.

However, lead counsel to the appellant, Paul Erokoro, SAN, expressed confidence that the Court of Appeal would grant their request and overturn the High Court’s decision on the bail application.

Erokoro described El-Rufai’s arrest and the legal battles surrounding him as politically motivated, arguing that the former governor did not commit treason or kill anyone and that the offences he is charged with are bailable.

“El-Rufai is a public figure who cannot run; he was a former governor and a former minister and is an elder statesman.

“Bail is a constitutional right. Except in capital offences, a defendant who is not on bail finds it very difficult to prepare his case.

“El-Rufai, held in ICPC custody by the agency prosecuting him, will find it difficult to access his lawyers and witnesses because he cannot be sure his communication with them is confidential.

“But with this appeal, we hope the court will take a different view and honour the bail application,” he said.