Alleged Abuse Of Office: Bauchi Gov Describes Allegations By ICPC As False & Mischievous

Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has described as “false and mischievous” allegations levelled against him by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission over alleged abused of his office as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The ICPC on June 17 alleged that the land which housed a school, Zinaria International School, located at Plot 298, Wuye District, Cadastral Zone B3, Abuja, now belonging to the governor and his family members, used to belong to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.

But Mohammed, reacting in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant, Mukhtar Gidado, said the ICPC’s narrative was not only false and misleading but also raised fundamental issues of constitutionalism bordering on human rights and the rule of law.

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“We refute the commission’s story in its entirety and state that Senator Bala Mohammed did not flout any policy or break any law, known to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, or did he, in any way, breach his oath of office to warrant perniciously scandalising his name or subjecting members of his family to mindless persecution as the ICPC is wilfully pushing.

“Zinaria International School was established and had been long operational, offering quality education, in a cost-effective manner, to all and sundry, long before Senator Bala Mohammed became Minister of the FCT.

“Like any other corporate entity, due to planned expansion, the school applied for land, a legitimate right it would have exercised, irrespective of whomsoever was the Minister of the FCT at the time,” he said.

He added, “The shareholders and directors of the school are Nigerians who, by their respective ages, were qualified to apply for and be allocated land if they met the conditions required. And we make bold to say that all the names listed in the MEMAT (Draft Memorandum and Articles of Association) of the school are eminently qualified to be allocated land.”