The new governor of Kano State, Abba Kabir Yusuf, popularly known as Abba Gida-Gida, after his inauguration yesterday issued several executive orders believed to have heralded several probes of  his immediate predecessor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.

In his inaugural speech, the governor ordered the security agencies in the state to immediately take over all public properties sold by Ganduje’s administration.

I am announcing, today, that all these public places and assets that were immorally plundered and sold by the Ganduje administration should be taken over by law enforcement agencies, led by the Police, the DSS, Civil Defense, and Hisbah pending the final decision of government,” he said.

Some of the properties the governor was referring to include “lands in and around schools, religious and cultural sites, hospitals and clinics, graveyards and green areas, and along the city wall of Kano”, as well as other landed properties and assets belonging to Kano State within and outside the state to their cronies and agents.”

He said judicial commission of inquiry would be empaneled in the coming days “to ensure that all perpetrators and those that aided and abetted them are brought to justice.”

He also ordered that “all political appointees heading government MDAs and companies are hereby relieved of their appointment with immediate effect.

“Similarly, all boards of MDAs, companies and institutions of higher learning are hereby dissolved with immediate effect,” he added.

He said all the actions he would be taking in the next few days were targeted towards resetting the state and repositioning it on the path of honour and dignity, respect and responsibility, as well as on the path of progress and prosperity.

Earlier, during the handover ceremony, the new governor berated his predecessor for delegating his (Ganduje) Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Usman Alhaji, to make the handover of government, a move the new governor described as “disappointing” and a departure from the established democratic process of handing over of government.

In the report read by the outgoing SSG, Ganduje said in the eight years he held reign, the state government received a cumulative of N1.2trillion and also had a cumulative expenditure of N1.2trillion while leaving behind a total debt profile of over N241bn.

He, however, said the state government left behind some funds through some of its agency including about N740m in the Kano Energy and Hydro Power project and about N703m in the Kano Energy and Hydropower Operational.

But Yusuf said it was disheartening that Ganduje left a debt profile of over N241bn for the incoming administration, saying this would be probed accordingly.

“It is so disheartening that the government left a debt profile of over N241billion for us. Where are we going to source the money the IGR they talk about is nothing to write home about.

“The money they realized through Kano Internal Revenue Service was nothing to write home about. Why the use of so many consultants? Just like rain conduit for the resources of people Kano State. We are going to look at it. I am not satisfied!

“I pray Almighty Allah reward him (Ganduje) according to what he did for the state. We are not here to steal money, we are not here to grab their lands. We are here to work and by the grace of Allah, we will achieve all we set out to achieve within the next four years,” the governor said.

Sets up task force against phone snatching, another for sanitation 

The governor also announced the formation of a taskforce to tackle the menace of phone snatching and other violent crimes perpetrated on the streets of the state.

“We are aware that one of the major factors that fuels these criminal activities is the consumption of illicit drugs. 

“I am, today, announcing the formation of a Special Joint Taskforce to prevent phone snatching and other street crimes comprising of teams of law enforcement agencies and mobile courts that would work together to clear our streets of these criminals and bring all of them to justice swiftly. 

“The Kano State Reformatory Institute, Kiru will be reopened soonest for the purposes of rehabilitating drug addicts,” he added.