President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday took on Governor Rabiu Kwakwanso of Kano State, accusing him of embezzling the money his (President’s) campaign office provided to mobilise the state delegates for the 2011 presidential primary of the Peoples Democratic Party and the main election.
He said the governor deliberately engaged in the act to make the state delegates angry and refuse to vote for him in the primary and during the presidential election.
Jonathan said contrary to his claim, Kwakwanso did not vote for him in the 2011 presidential election.
The President made the allegations at a PDP unity rally held in Kano to welcome a former governor of the state, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, into the party.
He was reacting to a media report that quoted the governor as saying that he regretted voting for him (the President) in the 2011 election because he had not brought any development to the state.
The President recalled that when it was becoming obvious that he was going to win the presidential primary in 2011, Kwankwaso and the state delegates stormed out of the Eagles Square, Abuja venue of the election.
He argued that if the governor had voted for him, he would have stayed back to rejoice with him alongside his colleagues from other PDP states.
He said, “First, we read in some of the newspapers that the governor of Kano State, Kwankwaso said he regretted voting for me.
“Let me tell my good people of Kano that Kwankwaso did not vote for me and the Vice President whether in the primary or the main election.
“We accommodate a lot, we know so much but we talk less. Those of you from Kano in PDP, you knew what happened that when we entered that Eagles Square, by the time the counting got half way and when it was clear that I was to emerge as the candidate, Kwankwaso left the venue.
“If Kwakwanso had voted for me, he would have stayed to celebrate with me with the other governors.
“Even the little money that my campaign office provided for refreshment of the Kano delegates and for their transport, Kwakwanso refused to give to the delegates.
“He did that so that the Kano delegates will be angry and they will not vote for me.
“Even for the main election, the little money the campaign office sent to Kano State to facilitate the movement of people, Kwakwanso refused to give the money to anybody. How can Kwankwaso tell people that he voted for me?”
He urged the people of the state to challenge the 44 local government chairmen in the state to account for the N255.342bn that they had collected from the Federation Account since June 2011,
“Kano people should call all the 44 local government chairmen in the state and ask them what they have done in Kano State from June 2011 when we came into office till today that they have received N255.342bn.
“This money is over one quarter trillion naira. This amount of money is the one local government chairmen and councillors are supposed to use, somebody take this money and is spending it.
The President again commiserated with the families of those who lost loved ones during the Nyanya bomb explosion on Monday.
He reassured them that the government would continue to do its best to make sure that peace was restored.
Attempts to get comments from the Kano State Government proved abortive. A telephone call to the Director of Press and Public Relations to the state governor, Baba Dantiye, was picked and then switched off.
A response to a text message sent by our correspondent was still being awaited as of the time of filing this report.
Source PUNCH
