Governor Nasir El-Rufai has ordered the demolition of a factional headquarter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kaduna State as the crisis within the party deepens.
The building at 11B, Sambo Road, G.R.A., Kaduna, belonged to Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi (Kaduna North) and housed the secretariat of the factional Kaduna Restoration Group, led by Chairman Danladi Wada. The faction, last week, had handed El-Rufai a six-month suspension over alleged anti-party activities.
The demolition carried out around 5:00 a.m. was allegedly supervised by the governor and backed by armed security operatives.
Reactions from Hunkuyi’s purported official Twitter page read: “In the early hours of today, the @GovKaduna Mallam @elrufai personally drove a bulldozer accompanied by armoured tanks to destroy my house at 11B Sambo Road. This is a new low, and fighting dirty with such low level of pettiness is indeed unprecedented in Kaduna State.
“It is on record that few months back, @GovKaduna Mallam @elrufai marked another property of mine in Hunkuyi town for demolition but residents of the area prevented the officials from demolishing it. Today, he came well prepared with military men to destroy my house at Sambo Road.
“This is also the same way, Mallam @elrufai destroyed the house of the APC Dep National Chairman Northwest, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadir months back, which tells you that the governor is reckless, petty & can’t stand political pressure, without resorting to being a ruthless dictator.”
But addressing reporters later, Hunkuyi said he had pardoned El-Rufai:
“As my own brother, I wish to let you know, I have no case. I have forgiven him as a person, for doing what he did. I have no issues with him for doing what he did. He is my brother. For bringing down one of my houses, even if it is not my last house. I see no reason why I should lose any sleep.
“In my own opinion, let it be an incident to grow democracy in my state. Let this be a rallying point for those who have been shortchanged in any way in my state, as regards the leadership of El-Rufai. It is not too much a price to pay for democracy to thrive in my state.”
El-Rufai is also believed to have ordered bulldozers to a building at the Mogadishu area belonging to the former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caretaker committee chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi.
Asked to comment, Makarfi said: “I have nothing to say for now over the unfortunate development. I would have spoken on the issue if I had wanted. Let him (El-Rufai) do whatever he likes.”
Wada said: “The reason advanced by the government in the statement issued by the Director-General of the Kaduna Geographical Information Service (KADGIS) that the demolition was necessary as a result of default by the owner of the property, Senator Hunkuyi, in paying ground rent for a period of eight years is untenable before the law, and is, hereby, condemned in strong terms.”
