Kano officers cheated retired civil servant of pension, brought about dying – Governor

The Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, narrated how an unnamed retired civil servant died after bribing an official of the state authorities in an try to get his entitlement paid.

Mr Yusuf claimed the pensioner, who was in dire want of cash for his daughter’s marriage ceremony bills, was requested by the officers to forfeit one-third of his gratuity if he wished it to be promptly paid.

“The pensioner acquired his daughter’s marriage ceremony extended unnecessarily due to his monetary incapability.

“He sought his retirement advantages within the earlier administration however they demanded that he should pay one-third of his gratuity.

“He struggled and supplied the quantity however nonetheless, he was denied his proper. That’s how he acquired a coronary heart assault and died. In the present day we paid his heirs his entitlements,” the governor stated.

The governor stated this on Saturday whereas flagging off the cost of N6bn gratuity and dying advantages of over 5,000 pensioners within the state.

My Yusuf blamed the rapid previous administration for being insensitive to the plight of retirees within the state.

He stated his administration inherited an enormous pension legal responsibility.

He stated many pensioners died with out being paid their gratuities.

How travail of pensioners started in Kano

In 2015, the pensioners’ union petitioned former governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, to the Financial and Monetary Crime Fee, (EFCC) demanding the repatriation of N2 billion pension cash allegedly deposited by Mr Kwankwaso in a failed financial institution.

The pensioners, in a petition dated 20 Might 2015 and signed by considered one of their counsel, Bulama Bukarti, stated the state pensioners’ trustees deposited N2 billion in Euro Financial institution Plc, Kano department, on the instruction of Mr Kwankwaso.

They stated quickly after the deposit was made, the financial institution went into liquidation and the previous governor refused to observe up on claims. They requested the EFCC to ask Mr Kwankwaso to clarify why he refused to observe up on the case of the N2 billion pension fund on the NDIC.

The petitioners famous that Mr Kwankwaso was not a trustee of their funds and thus lacked the authority to cope with the funds as he preferred.

Additionally within the petition, they queried the continued withholding of their cash, about N10 billion, by the commissioner for finance and the accountant-general underneath Mr Kwankwaso.

They stated once they started to ask questions, the previous governor instructed them he had bought three warehouses for them on the Free Commerce Zone in Kano.

He additionally stated his housing mission, Amana Metropolis, had been transferred to the pension belief fund as an alternative of the retained N10 billion.

The petitioners, nevertheless, famous that Mr Kwankwaso’s actions have been unlawful and bordered on fraud.

“For this and plenty of extra we ask the EFCC to do a radical job to unravel the fraud carried out in all points referring to us,” the pensioners stated of their 2015 petition to the EFCC.

In keeping with the petitioners, Mr Kwankwaso had directed that pension remittances be used for constructing homes for pensioners.

A tripartite deal was reached between Kano State Pension Belief Funds because the buyers and Kano State Funding and Property Restricted and Kano State Housing Company Restricted as builders on a 60:40 sharing ratio.

Nonetheless, after contracts for the development of 1,579 homes have been awarded for the event of the properties, the petitioners alleged Mr Kwankwaso “manipulated” the method and terminated the time period of the settlement. They claimed he then allotted the properties to his aides and cronies.

The alleged misappropriation occurred in Might 2015, the month Mr Kwankwaso left workplace as Kano State governor.

Success finally

In 2023, the EFCC after years of interrogating Mr Kwankwaso secured the ultimate forfeiture of 324 properties misappropriated underneath his administration.

The properties have been stated to have been misappropriated by the Kano State Pension Fund Trustees throughout Mr Kwankwaso’s administration in 2015.

Inyang Ekwo, a choose on the Federal Excessive Court docket, Abuja, gave the order of ultimate forfeiture whereas ruling on a movement by the EFCC, searching for a closing forfeiture of the properties that are “moderately suspected to be proceeds of illegal actions of Kano State Pension Fund Trustees”.

“The properties comprise 168 houses located at Sheikh Ja’afar Mahmud Adam Bandirawo Metropolis, Kano; 122 homes at Sheikh Nasiru Kabara (Amana Metropolis), Kano and 38 homes at Sheikh Khalifa Ishaq Rabiu Metropolis, Kano.

”The 168 homes at Sheikh Ja’afar Mahmud Adam Bandirawo Metropolis are made up of 55 Models of 2-bedroom semi-detached homes; 51 Models of 3-bedroom homes; 7 Models of 3-bedroom transformed; 17 Models of 3-bedroom Carport; 3 Models of 4-bedroom Duplex; 9 Models of 5-bedroom Duplex and 22 Models of 3-bedroom Inexperienced-roof”, the anti-graft company stated.

“The 122 homes at Sheikh Nasiru Kabara, Kano embody 14 Models of 2-bedroom semi-detached homes; 62 Models of 2-bedroom semi-detached homes; 4 Models of 3-bedroom transformed; 13 Models of 3-bedroom transformed ; 3 Models of 3-bedroom indifferent homes; 11 Models of 3-bedroom indifferent homes, 3 Models of the 3-bedroom carport, 5 Models of 3-bedroom carport 2 Models of the 3-bedroom Inexperienced roof; 3 Models of the 4-bedroom carport and a couple of Models of 4-bedroom Pergola.

“The 38 homes at Sheikh Khalifa Ishaq Rabiu Metropolis, Kano embody 19 Models of 3-bedroom bungalows; 5 Models of three Inexperienced roofs; 6 Models of 4-bedroom Duplex, 2 Models of 4-bedroom BQ, I Models of 4-bedroom Duplex and 5 Models of 5-bedroom duplex,” the EFCC stated.