In a significant legal development, the Kano State High Court has upheld the suspension of Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as a member of the party. Presided over by Justice Usman Malam Na’abba, the court affirmed the suspension following an ex parte motion filed by two executive members of the APC Ganduje ward, Laminu Sani and Haladu Gwanjo, who were among the nine ward executives that suspended Abdullahi Ganduje two days prior.
The court’s decision came after an ex parte motion filed by Haladu Gwanjo and Laminu Sani through their counsel, Ibrahim Sa’ad. The plaintiffs, identifying as executive members of the APC Ganduje ward, sought the motion on behalf of the ward’s executive members. Gwanjo, serving as the party’s ward Legal Adviser, had announced Ganduje’s suspension two days earlier.
Consequently, the court ordered Ganduje to refrain from presiding over any affairs of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC going forward. This ruling underscores the legal weight behind Ganduje’s suspension and its implications for his role within the party.
The State Working Committee (SWC) of the APC in Kano had previously announced the suspension of ward party leaders who initiated Ganduje’s suspension. This decision came after the leadership of the party at Ganduje ward in Dawkin Tofa Local Government area announced Ganduje’s suspension, citing corruption charges filed against him by the government.
In response to these developments, the APC Chairman in Dawakin Tofa Local Government, Inusa Suleiman Dawanau, stated that those behind Ganduje’s suspension were engaged in anti-party activities, with evidence of their meetings with the ruling opposition revealed.
The APC, through its National Publicity Secretary, Barrister Felix Morka, condemned the purported suspension as a “criminal act” orchestrated by individuals associated with the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP). The legitimate Executive Committee of the Ganduje Ward denounced the suspension and reaffirmed Ganduje as a bona fide member of the party, dismissing the suspension as invalid.