Barely 10 days to the end of his two-term tenure, Kaduna Governor Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai has accused some of his predecessors of stealing State resources to build houses in Kaduna and Dubai.

El-Rufai, in his valedictory media chat on the Hausa service KSMC, a state-owned radio, said one of them built a mansion on Jabi road with public funds.

He challenged the past Governors to face the people of Kaduna State and swear with Holy Qur’an that they never stole from the government coffers.

On his part, he said: “I can swear I never stole a Kobo from the government coffers.”

President open letter

The Governor’s attack in the Friday evening media chat was coming barely 24hours after former Governor Ahmed Makarfi raised the alarm the El-Rufai administration served nine of his companies with demolition notice.

El- Rufai, who was reacting to the opposition criticising his efforts, said: “I am happy with what we have seen. The work we have started and the quality of the works, we are going to spend years enjoying them. It is not the type of roads they did in the past that, after two rainy seasons, the roads will spoil. These works we are doing, we are doing them with quality.

“Am happy with what I have seen, but there is still more to be done, because to us, we want a people to enter Kaduna and see no untarred road anywhere. We want to see tarred road in every community of Kaduna with solar street lights, same for Kafanchan, Zaria and our local government areas. That was our wish, but the difficult circumstance our government met, we couldn’t do everything we planned to do, until we had to borrow before we could do what we did.

“But those that are day we took loans, they should look, look at their money on the ground. We didn’t collect this loan and run away to Dubai to buy houses or go to Jabi Road to build a mansion so that we can sleep well, that is not how we are.

“I became Governor of Kaduna with only one house on Danja Road at Ungwan Sarki, now am finishing to the glory of God, that is the only house I have. I didn’t build any mansion, I don’t need it. I didn’t steal anybody’s money and I am challenging everyone that governed this state to also come out and swear with Qur’an that, when they governed the state, they didn’t steal a kobo of Kaduna resource that is not their entitlement.

“I swear to God, me I will do that swearing. So, I am challenging all of them, everyone should come out and face the people of Kaduna State and tell them he didn’t steal their money. Because we know them, they are children of Santa, they are not children of Dangote; we know them from school. Where did they get money to build those mansions? What type of business were they doing? We know.

“Our of plans and antecedents are not like that. Our own understanding is that, leadership is a trust from God and to you will stand in front of God to give account of. As a result of that, every Naira and Kobo that we got, whether revenue or allocation from Abuja or loan, I swear by God, we have used it for the development of our people, we didn’t take and put in our pocket or take them to buy houses in Dubai, we don’t need that,” El-Rufai said.

Governor El-Rufai advised individuals whose primary motivation for entering politics is personal enrichment to steer clear, stating politics is meant for those who are content and genuinely committed to serving the people. (The Nation)

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