The Kano State Government has instituted legal action against former Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, his two sons, and several others before a High Court of the State over an alleged ₦4.49 billion fraud.
In the suit, the Kano State government is seeking to recover the 20 per cent equity stake in Dala Inland Dry Port Limited as well as to reclaim ₦4,492,387,013.76 in public funds said to have been misappropriated.
The fraud case which was filed on October 13, 2025, listed Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje; his sons, Umar Abdullahi Umar and Muhammad Abdullahi Umar; his former Special Adviser, Abubakar Sahabo Bawuro; Hassan Bello, former Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council; Adamu Aliyu Sanda, a legal practitioner; and Dala Inland Dry Port Limited as defendants.
The seven defendants according to the charge sheet, are facing a ten-count charge that included; breach of trust, conflict of interest, criminal conspiracy, and misappropriation of public funds.
The defendants are being accused of having allegedly conspired and fraudulently transfer 80 per cent of the dry port’s shares, including the state’s 20 per cent equity, to private interests under a shell company known as City Green Enterprise.
Prosecutors further alleged that the transaction was deliberately structured to conceal the true ownership of the port project, which was conceived to boost Kano’s economic infrastructure.
The prosecution further alleged that the defendants deliberately hijacked a federal initiative and used proxies and fake entities to conceal the diversion of public assets meant for the people of Kano State.
The prosecution also alleged claims that over ₦4.49 billion in public funds was siphoned under the guise of infrastructure development at the dry port, including the construction of a dual carriageway, electricity, and fencing.
Similarly, Kano State Government investigators alleged that the projects were financed with state resources but structured to benefit private firms owned by former Governor Ganduje, his sons and their associates in a way the government alleged was a fraud.
The summary of evidence by the Kano State Government indicated that the initial board of Dala Inland Dry Port Limited included a representative of the State, Abdullahi Haruna while the share transfer was alleged to have been executed unilaterally by Ganduje without the consent of other board members.
The case is expected to feature several high-profile witnesses, including the lead investigating officer and an early stakeholder who claimed that he was sidelined during the alleged takeover.
Also expected to be presented in the fraud case against Ganduje and his sons, is a policy document from the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, which confirmed Kano State’s 20 per cent equity in the dry port project.
The prosecution also said the fourth defendant was tasked with verifying the state’s equity share, evidence that will be central to the case, just as documents allegedly falsified to mislead regulators would also be tendered, in addition to evidence of ₦750 million transaction channelled through Safari Textile Ltd.
