By Desmond Mgboh, Kano
The League of Civil Society Organizations, Kano State, has condemned the allocation of 1,540 plots of land and a gift of N100 million to grassroot leaders of the All Progressives Congress by the state government.
A statement on Sunday and endorsed by 23 Civil Society organizations in the state led by Comrade Bala Abdullahi Wuduwa, Wuro Development Concerns and Yushua Sani Yankuzo, Center for Human Rights and Social Advancement (CEFSAN) said the allocation and financial gift were together an abuse of public resources amid widespread poverty in the state .
They also insisted that both gestures represented a breach of Section 121 of the 2022 Electoral Act which prohibits the use of gift or inducement to influence electoral conduct “before” , “ during” and “after “elections.
They held that the land allocation was a violation of the Land Use Act, which vests all lands in the hand of the Governor, to be held in trust for all citizens.
“By converting state- owned land into a tool for partisan mobilization, the administration has demonstrated a flagrant disregard for its duty to the people of Kano State” they insisted.
They, therefore, demanded an immediate suspension of the distribution of the plots of land and N100 million pending an independent review.
They also called for a legislative probe by the Kano State House of Assembly into the source of the fund and the selection criteria.
They also tasked the Independent Electoral Commission of Nigeria (INEC) to independently examine whether the 2022 Electoral Act had been violated while urging for a full disclosure of the beneficiaries to determine if the allocation was based on need or on party loyalty.
(The Sun)