Barely a day after receiving criticisms for endorsing and lifting up the hand of Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State, President Muhammadu Buhari stirred up controversy again on Saturday when he openly endorsed Gombe Central Senator, Danjuma Goje, who is accused of fraud to the tune of N5bn.
Buhari raised up Goje’s hand shortly after delivering his speech at an All Progressives Congress rally in Gombe.
The President had earlier told his supporters that he had delivered on his promise to fight corruption, diversify the economy and improve on the security of the nation.
After raising up the hand of the APC governorship candidate, Alhaji Muhammad Yahaya, the President subsequently raised up Goje’s hand.
Goje was first arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in 2011 and has remained in court ever since.
In April, 2018 the EFCC re-arraigned him alongside a former Executive Chairman, State University Basic Education Board, Gombe State, Alhaji Aliyu El-Nafaty, S.M. Dokoro, and the ex-governor’s cousin, Alhaji Sabo Tumu.
The defendants are facing charges before the Federal High Court in Gombe.
The re-arraignment is coming after an amendment to the charges.
Goje was accused of obtaining a loan of N5bn from Access Bank with a forged document, purporting that the Gombe State House of Assembly approved the loan.
The EFCC alleged that the ex-governor forged the signature of the Clerk of the Gombe State House of Assembly, Shehu Atiku, to facilitate the loan.
According to the EFCC, though Goje claimed that the N5bn was for infrastructural projects, the former governor allegedly diverted the money.
The money was alleged to have been diverted and laundered between November 2, 2010 and February 24, 2011.
The EFCC claimed that, for instance, Goje transferred N21.8m to his cousin, Tumu, “for the supply of food items to the Gombe State Government House when you knew or reasonably ought to know that the contract for the said food supplies awarded to the said Alhaji Sabo Mohammed Tumu, was not the outcome of any competitive bidding process in accordance with the Due Process Guidelines contained in the due process circular reference No. GO/CS/S/MEM/VII/358 dated 25th February, 2008, adopted by your administration.”
Punch
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