Alleged Fraud: Court orders removal of Kano anti-corruption boss

A Federal High Court in Kano, presided by Justice Simon Amobeda, has directed the immediate removal of the chairman of the Kano State Public Complaint and Anticorruption Commission (PCACC), Barrister Muhuyi Magaji Rimingado, for alleged fraud charges.

Similarly, Justice Amobeda urged the Nigerian Police to withdraw its personnel from him,. and asked the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee to investigate multiple allegations of flaunting court orders against him.

Furthermore, the judge equally recommended the anti-graft boss to the legal practitioner’s disciplinary committee for investigation over alleged serial disregard to orders of the court.

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However, in two separate fundamental rights enforcement cases with numbers FHC/KN/CS/308/2024, and FHC/KN/CS/307/2024, filed by Mustafa Sule Garo and Muhammad Sule Garo, respectively, where the applicants sought to be saved from arrest and investigation by PCACC, Justice Amobeda said the commission has since lost the power to act on financial crimes due to the judgements in two previous cases.

Recalls that a Kano State High Court had earlier ruled that the provisions of PCACC’s enabling law that concern its capacity to investigate financial crimes are in abeyance because they duplicate the roles of federal commissions set to do the same.

However, it will also be recalled that another earlier judgement, this time by the Federal High Court, said the PCACC, under Rimingado, cannot be allowed to carry out any function of his office due to a suspension order slammed on him by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) in April.

Rimingado, an anti-graft chief, was arraigned before the Tribunal on multiple counts alleging his involvement in gross graft, which included conflict of interest, failure to submit a written declaration of all assets and liabilities, false declaration of assets, and abuse of office.

While the CCT Chairman, Justice Danladi Umar suspended Rimingado, he then ruled that he could not continue to discharge the duties and responsibilities of his office while facing trial to avoid any interference with the case.

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However, the chief press secretary of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), Mrs Veronica Kato, said his suspension was “pending the conclusion of the trial.”

Mrs Kato stated that Magaji was suspended over a 10-count charge of corruption filed against him by the CCB on November 16, 2023.

Therefore, Justice Amobeda tasked the attorney general of Kano State with complying with the CCT ruling and getting Rimingado out of office.