The Kano State House of Assembly has initiated impeachment proceedings against the Deputy Governor of Kano State, Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, over allegations of gross misconduct, abuse of office, and breach of public trust.
The notice of impeachment was presented on the floor of the Assembly by the Majority Leader, Lawan Hussaini Dala, who said the move was taken in accordance with Section 188 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999.
According to Dala, the impeachment notice outlines several allegations connected to Abdussalam’s tenure as Commissioner for Local Government between 2023 and 2024, as well as his current position as deputy governor.
He alleged that while overseeing the administration of the state’s 44 local government councils as commissioner, the deputy governor was involved in the diversion of funds meant for local government operations.
The majority leader told the Assembly that between June 2023 and January 2024, Abdussalam allegedly received a kickback of ₦1.5 million monthly from each of the 44 local government areas. The arrangement reportedly amounted to ₦66 million every month for seven months, totaling about ₦462 million.
Dala further alleged that from February to July 2024, the deputy governor received additional payments from the councils under the guise of executing special assignments. According to him, the payments amounted to ₦3.255 million monthly from each local government, bringing the total to approximately ₦726 million over six months.
The lawmaker said the alleged transactions constituted a serious breach of public trust and undermined confidence in public governance.
The impeachment notice also accused the deputy governor of abuse of office. Dala alleged that Abdussalam used his position as commissioner to facilitate payments of ₦10 million each from the 44 local government councils to a pharmaceutical firm, NovoMed Pharmaceuticals Limited. The transaction, said to total about ₦440 million, was allegedly carried out in violation of the state’s procurement and fiscal management regulations.
“The misuse of official capacity to confer undue advantage constitutes abuse of power and is contrary to the obligations of public office,” Dala said while presenting the notice.
He added that the allegations amount to gross misconduct as defined under Section 188(2) of the constitution, which covers serious violations of constitutional provisions and other grave wrongdoing by a public office holder.
According to the majority leader, the impeachment notice was endorsed by 38 lawmakers, meeting the constitutional requirement for initiating such proceedings. He therefore urged the Speaker to approve the transmission of the notice to the deputy governor as stipulated by law.
“Based on the foregoing allegations, we hereby resolve that His Excellency, Aminu Abdussalam, the Deputy Governor of Kano State, be impeached and removed from office in accordance with the provisions of Section 188 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Dala stated.
Following the presentation, members of the Assembly signaled their support for the notice. The Speaker acknowledged receipt of the document and is expected to formally communicate the allegations to the deputy governor in line with constitutional procedures.
Under the constitution, once the notice is served, the House may request the state’s Chief Judge to constitute an investigative panel if the motion is supported by the required majority of lawmakers.
As of the time of filing this report, the deputy governor has not publicly responded to the allegations.
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