Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State has failed to appear before the state house of assembly committee investigating the videos of him allegedly receiving bribe from contractors.
The governor sent the commissioner for information, Muhammadu Garba and justice commissioner Ibrahim Mukhtar to represent him.
Thelagostimes recalls that the state house had on thursday, summoned the governor to appear before them on Friday.
The summons came from the seven-man panel probing the allegations of bribery on the part of the governor.
The house had requested the appearance of Ganduje at the investigative hearing to give the committee his perspective on the issue.
It also requested a written, signed and dated statement of the governor, as part of the proceedings to be submitted before the hearing on Friday.
The investigative committee also gave the governor the liberty to appear, with his lawyer, if he wants.
However, on Friday, the governor failed to appear before the house but rather sent two commissioners to represent him.
The governor was said to be busy attending to pressing engagements at the government house.
Kano justice commissioner said the letter of invitation gave Ganduje the option of sending a representative or a written document as provided by the country’s constitution.
The information commissioner, lawyer to the governor, submitted his position on the alleged bribery videos.
Ganduje denied collecting bribe from contractors, saying the video clips were aimed at tarnishing his image politically.
He said: “Such untruth publications were done to the Emir of Kano, Malam Muhammad Sanusi the II and also to the former Governor, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau.”
Meanwhile, the chairman of the committee, Baffa Danagundi, commended the commissioners for standing in for the governor.
Danagundi said the committee will scrutinise the video on Tuesday in the presence of the representatives of both parties to the matter.
The justice commissioner, who is also the state’s attorney general, praised the state assembly committee for its fairness in the handling of the issue.