Kaduna state Governor, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, has declared that the demolition of Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi house, which had been turned to a factional secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was done legally, insisting that “if Hunkuyi is not satisfied with the action, he should seek redress in a court of competent jurisdiction.” El-Rufai, who spoke through his Special Adviser on Political and Intergovernmental Affairs, Comrade Uba Sani, at an interactive session with newsmen yesterday in Abuja, said his action was within the ambit of the law. “The demolition was legal. It was also done at the right time.
There is no particular time frame to punish somebody who breaks the law. The demolition of that premises has no political motive. We have been demolishing houses in Kaduna like that. Is it because those other persons, whose houses were demolished, are poor and cannot talk to the media?
“We demolished a lot of houses, but because those people are poor people, nobody raised eyebrows. We demolished over 40 houses in Kaduna. In Zaria, which is part of Hunkuyi’s senatorial district, we also demolished houses, but he did not go to the radio to talk about it. Why didn’t he go to the floor of the Senate and raise the issue? As far as timing is concerned, it’s perfect. We are doing the right thing.
The governor’s aide also said: “Since the inception of this administration, KADGIS has been announcing on radio and television, calling on people to pay their ground rents. I have paid my own. I have two houses in Kaduna. I have paid for all. When I was working with former President Olusegun Obasanjo, el-Rufai was the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and he revoked my land even though we are friends.”
Also speaking, the governor’s Special Adviser on Media, Muyiwa Adekeye, said: “You cannot violate a law and when action is taken against you, you talk about timing. If anybody is not satisfied, let him or her go to court. On the alleged faction within the APC, Adekeye said the authenticity of the Shuaibu Idris-led Kaduna APC was not in doubt, adding that “there is no faction in the party in Kaduna state.” “Hakeem Baba Ahmed, Senator Shehu Sani and Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi cannot claim to be factional APC when all the party executives from the wards, local governments and state exco are not with them.”
