The Kano Civil Society Forum has expressed displeasure and anger over the Kano State House of Assembly approval of N10 billion loan request by the state government and called for the immediate reversal of the ill-timed approval.
Recall that on Wednesday, the state Assembly approved Govenor Abdullahi Ganduje’s N10 billion loan request for the provision of CCTV in five emirates of the state to enhance security.
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This is contained in a protest letter addressed to the Speaker of the state Assembly, Engr. Hamisu Ibrahim Chidari,
signed by the President and Secretary General of the Group, Amb. Ibrahim Waiya and Peter Hassan Tijani respectively and made available to Daily Telescope in Kano on Saturday.
The letter, dated 16th June, 2022, said, “We wish to register our displeasure and anger on the actions of the members of the Kano State House of Assembly, for consistently supporting this kind of initiative camouflaged as citizens driven, therefore beseech you for an outright review and reversal of this ill-timed approval and unpopular action.
“Mr. Speaker sir, let us remind you that a reliable information from the Debt Management Office (DMO), Abuja, has rated Kano state debt profile as at March 31st, 2022 as high as to the tune of N127,847,657,184.82 (domestic), this is pretty too unpleasant for a State like Kano. The spate at which borrowings by the Kano State Government has assumed, is not only alarming but also disturbing.
“This ugly practice can only be best described as a systematic scheme to mortgage the future of Kano State and enslave us as the citizens.
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“The decision of the Kano State government to collect such loans at this period is unacceptable, as other options could be explored to raise funding for such projects and therefore not be through borrowings.
“We wish to make it on record that, our concern is bordered on the plight of the Kano citizens, devoid of any sentiment or bigotry against the government, as we always stand for social justice and accountable governance.
“The forum wishes to request the leadership of the Kano State House of Assembly to rescind its earlier approval forthwith, in the interest of the Kano citizens, and look beyond political sentiment or personal benefits and focus on preserving the future of Kano people, as posterity shall surely judge your actions or inactions.
“It is therefore on this premise, the forum, wishes to draw the attention of His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Kano State, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, OFR, to withdraw his intention of borrowing the N10 billion and look inward to mobilize the required resources for the proposed purchase and installations of the security cameras.
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“Mr. Speaker sir, if you could recall that the forum, has for more than 4 years been at the forefront of advocacies to many high profiled personalities in Kano State, for the implementation of Kano State Security Trust Fund, including your office. And this law (Fund) if it were implemented could have been the best platform to canvas for resources on all matters of security and peace in Kano State, as it has been the case in Lagos State.
“We, therefore, hope that the Kano State security Trust Fund, would be implemented as soon as possible to provide an avenue for resource mobilization for the security sector to complement Kano State efforts in this direction,” the letter said.
