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Ganduje transfers power to Deputy as he visits Harvard for leadership course

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5 years ago

December 8, 2021

Seun Owope

Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of Kano State has transferred power to his deputy, Dr. Nasir Yusuf Gawuna, following his trip to the United States of America (USA) to participate in a week-long programme.

Ganduje is reportedly attending the “Authentic Leadership Development Programme” at Harvard Business School, Boston.

The state’s Commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba said Gawuna will serve as the Acting governor of the state in his absence.

The statement added that all official transactions, henceforth, should be channeled through the office of the Deputy Governor for necessary action.

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Vote-buying remains a major concern One of the strongest warnings from Osun was the continued presence of vote-buying and voter inducement. Yiaga Africa said the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were consistent with its independent statistical projections, but cautioned that this did not remove concerns about the integrity of voters' choices amid reports of vote-buying and inducement. The concern is particularly significant ahead of 2027, when political competition will take place nationwide and involve presidential, National Assembly and state-level contests. The International Republican Institute (IRI), following a pre-election assessment mission conducted in August, identified monetised political competition, election-related violence, insecurity and declining public confidence in INEC among the structural challenges facing the 2027 elections. IRI recommended stronger investigation and prosecution of vote-buying and voter inducement, urging INEC, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and security agencies to act on credible allegations. Technology improves transparency — but has limits The Osun election also demonstrated how electoral technology can improve transparency. INEC's electronic transmission of polling-unit results through the IReV platform provided observers and members of the public with a mechanism to monitor uploaded results. Yiaga Africa subsequently said the official results were consistent with its independent statistical estimates, describing the outcome as evidence that the announced results reflected the ballots counted at polling units. However, technical problems with BVAS were reported during voting. CDD said difficulties involving biometric verification and slow processing occurred in several LGAs, including Irepodun, Ejigbo, Obokun, Osogbo, Olorunda, Ola Oluwa, Ede North and Ede South. 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With Nigeria's 2027 general elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, the Osun experience provides both a warning and an opportunity: the country has made progress in electoral transparency, but vote-buying, insecurity and declining trust must be confronted before they are magnified across a nationwide election.

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Ganduje transfers power to Deputy as he visits Harvard for leadership course

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