Bauchi Governor Describes Dogara’s Claims As ‘Ridiculous’

The Special Adviser to the governor on Media and Strategy, Ali Ali, condemned the allegations in a statement on Sunday. “This is absolute balderdash, especially coming from a supposedly enlightened leader,” he said. “The total receipt from FAAC in the preceding three years is nowhere close to that outrageous figure.” Speaker Dogara had raised an alarm of alleged fraud and theft by Governor Abubakar, to the tune of N400 billion since he assumed office in May 2015. Addressing a crowd of supporters on Friday at a campaign rally in Dass Local Government Area of the state, the lawmaker alleged that the money was diverted using ghost workers. He had presented some documents which purportedly showed how thousands of non-existent people were said to have been employed in 2015 shortly after the governor came into office. Dogara also challenged the governor to take him to court and promised that he would prove the allegations. Ali, however, described the allegations levelled against the governor by the lawmaker as ridiculous. He said Speaker Dogara was merely reacting to his purported defeat ahead of the general elections. “Making such fantastic claims will not save him from the fury of voters in the coming polls,” the governor’s aide said. He added, “For a lawyer, this ridiculous allegation underscores the quality of his thoughts and actions as number four citizen. His leadership is defined by primordial segmentation and sentiments.”]]>