Ganduje reacts to El-Rufai’s comment linking him to Dadiyata’s disappearance

The former Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, has called for scrutiny of his Kaduna counterpart, Nasir El-Rufai, after the latter linked him to the disappearance of Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Dadiyata.

Mr Ganduje, in a statement signed by former Kano Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Muhammad Garba, described the allegation “as reckless, unfounded and a clear attempt to shift responsibility for an incident that occurred entirely within Kaduna State.”

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr El-Rufai claimed that Dadiyata was abducted from his Kaduna residence by police officers dispatched from Kano State, when Mr Ganduje was governor.

For several years, many Nigerians on social media accused Mr El-Rufai, who was Kaduna governor during the abduction, of being behind the incident.

Addressing the allegations on Arise Television on Friday, Mr El-Rufai said Dadiyata was not a critic of his administration, as widely speculated. Instead, he stated that the activist was a vocal critic of Mr Ganduje’s government.

“Three years after he was abducted, a policeman who was posted from Kano to Ekiti State confessed to someone that they were sent from Kano to abduct Dadiyata and that the officer was worried about that. That is all I know,” Mr El-Rufai stated.

Mr El-Rufai maintained that the disappearance is not a Kaduna State issue, despite the incident occurring within its borders. He argued that the state could not have provided specific protection because it was unaware of his friction with the Kano State Government.

The Disappearance of Dadiyata

On 2 August 2019, Dadiyata, a 34-year-old lecturer at the Federal University Dutsin-Ma, was intercepted by unidentified armed men as he drove into his compound in Barnawa, Kaduna State.

Dadiyata was a well-known social media influencer and a staunch supporter of former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso.

Since his disappearance, his family and various human rights organisations have filed multiple lawsuits. In 2020, a Federal High Court in Kaduna ordered the State Security Service (SSS) and other security agencies to produce him or release him, but the agencies denied having him in their custody.

Amnesty International and other global watchdogs have classified his case as an enforced disappearance. For over seven years, his whereabouts have remained unknown, and no group has officially claimed responsibility for his capture.

Below is the full response by Mr Ganduje through his former commissioner

Former Governor of Kano state, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has firmly rejected allegations by his former Kaduna state counterpart, Nasir El-Rufai, linking him to the disappearance of Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Dadiyata.

In a measured but unequivocal response contained in a statement signed by former Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs in Kano state, Comrade Muhammad Garba, the former APC national chairman described the allegation as reckless, unfounded and a clear attempt to shift responsibility for an incident that occurred entirely within Kaduna State.

He emphasised that Dadiyata lived and operated in Kaduna, where he was widely known for directing his criticisms at the Kaduna state government. According to him, there is no credible record suggesting that the activist’s primary focus was the Kano state government or Dr. Ganduje.

“Everyone in Kaduna knew the nature of the criticism he made and who it was directed at,” he stated, noting that responsibility for security in Kaduna at the time rested with the state government and the relevant federal security agencies operating there.

The statement called for careful scrutiny of El-Rufai’s recent remarks, stressing that such serious allegations must be supported by verifiable evidence rather than political rhetoric. Dragging Ganduje into the matter without proof, Garba said, not only politicizes a painful and unresolved episode but also risks further confusing the public over an already sensitive case.

Contrasting the political climates of both states during the period in question, Garba maintained that Ganduje’s two-term administration in Kano was marked by tolerance for criticism, open media engagement and acceptance of opposition voices.

“Unlike many political leaders who maintained strained relationships with the media, we allowed scrutiny, accommodated critical voices and even learned from dissenting perspectives,” he said.

The former Commissioner added that there was no record of arrests, intimidation or harassment of journalists or critics in Kano during Ganduje’s tenure.

He further observed that public discourse surrounding Dadiyata’s disappearance has, over the years, centred largely on events within Kaduna state and noted further that former Senator Shehu Sani had openly remarked that many individuals within the state were reluctant to speak publicly about the case, while commentator Reno Omokri previously raised allegations questioning how the matter was handled at the time.

Garba also expressed concern over El-Rufai’s claim that a police officer allegedly confessed to being sent from Kano to abduct Dadiyata. He questioned why such grave information, if credible, was not formally disclosed to investigative authorities or pursued transparently through appropriate security channels at the time.

“It is difficult to reconcile a claim of having no prior knowledge of the individual with simultaneously making detailed assertions about who was responsible,” he noted.
While reiterating sympathy for Dadiyata’s family, Garba stressed that the priority should remain on uncovering the truth through lawful and transparent investigative processes.

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“The family deserves closure,” he said. “What they do not deserve is for this tragic matter to become an instrument of political blame-shifting.”

He concluded by urging anyone with credible information regarding the abduction to present it to the appropriate authorities, emphasising that accountability must rest on facts and due process, not speculation.

Comrade Muhamad Garba
Former Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Kano state