Gov Yusuf: My Freely Given Mandate Remains Sacrosanct

*APC denies  alleged plan to compromise S’Court judgment

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja and Ahmad Sorondinki in Kano

The Kano State Governor, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, has declared that the mandate freely given to him by the collective decision of the Kano people remained sacrosanct.
This was as the All Progressives Congress (APC) has denied the “rumour” making  the round that it has struck a deal  to compromise the anticipated Supreme Court judgment in Kano governorship election.

Abba made the disclosure, when he visited Gwale Local Government Secretariat for an assessment of damage done by arsonists in last week’s attack.
Deputy Governor of the State, Aminu Abdulsalam Gwarzo, who represented the governor, promised to protect and defend the mandate at the Supreme Court.
He urged the residents not to be agitated because of the current happenings in the country concerning the outcome of the Court judgments on Kano, judging by the recent incidence of burning down parts of the Gwale Local Government Area Secretariat by miscreants.

The deputy governor, who is also the Commissioner for Local Governments and Chieftaincy Affairs, warned of the dangers of engaging in any form of violence that could disrupt the peace of the state while reiterating the need for peace in the state.
He stated that their call for peace was not in fear of anybody but to ensure there was no breakdown of law and order in the state due to its importance in the region and the entire country.

“We are here on a visit because of the very unfortunate incident that occurred within the last week. I am here as the Deputy Governor representing His Excellency Abba Kabir Yusuf and as Commissioner in charge of Local Government and Chieftaincy affairs, for which issues relating to local governments directly fall under my purview.
“I am, therefore, here to see for myself what happened and the extent of the damages caused by this unfortunate incident carried out by some miscreants,” he said.

He explained further, “We can understand that there is so much tension in the state because of the happenings over the last two months or so.
“People are agitated and getting more and more restive. We are calling on people to stay calm because Kano is our only state, we have no other state than Kano state.
“The importance of Kano to the entire northern Nigeria cannot be over-emphasised. The importance of Kano to this part of the country and indeed the entire country is such that nobody can afford to play with security issues in the state.
“That is why we are going to the extremes to ensure that peace reigns and we can calm the nerves of our supporters in the state, who are in the majority” the Deputy Governor declared.
Gwarzo, however, urged the people of the state to remain focused and be on the alert while calling for vigilance on what is happening within and outside of the state.

He said no stone would be left unturned in the struggle for justice for the people of the state at the judicial battleground.
Meanwhile, the Kano APC Chairman, Abdullahi Abbas, in a statement, yesterday, dismissed rumour that the party was attempting to compromise Supreme Court ruling, insisting that the party had no deal to compromise court judgement.
“Against the euphoric moments of the desperate members of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) that a deal has been struck in order to compromise the anticipated Supreme Court judgement,  chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano state, Alhaji Abdullahi Abbas has vehemently dismissed the so-called agreement and reconciliation as mere rumours.

“Since the NNPP started circulating the rumours, its gullible members are excited and continue to dish out all sorts of lies so as to make the party’s supporters continue to remain hopeful in the face of the prevailing disfranchisement,” he said.

Abbas said rumours had it that the NNPP had reached out to President Bola Tinubu to intervene in the matter in favour of the NNPP candidate to remain as governor and subsequently decamp to the APC.
“There is no where such meeting was held with either Mr President or any leader of the party. President Bola Tinubu is a democrat and strongly believes in the rule of law and the right thing to be done and therefore will not be part of any arrangement or reconciliation to subvert justice and support people who have stolen votes or breach the electoral act to emerge as leaders,” he said.