Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, on Saturday relieved his Special Adviser on Media, Salihu Tanko Yakasai, of his appointment “with immediate effect.”
Kano State Commissioner of Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, announced the sack in a statement on Saturday, saying the dismissal is based on Yakasai’s “continued unguarded comments and utterances which are deemed contrary to the stand of the All Progressive Congress (APC) government which he is serving.”
The Governor accused Yakasai of failing to “differentiate between personal opinion and official stand on matters of public concern and therefore cannot be allowed to continue to serve in a government he does not believe.”
“The Governor also warned political appointees and public servants to guard against making statements capable of drawing superfluous controversy,” the statement added.
The Governor also reaffirmed his commitment to the policies and programmes of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Yakasai has been in the eye of the storm since Friday when he criticised the APC-led government at all levels over the high level of insecurity in the country.
He had said the worsening insecurity in the country is an indication that the APC government has failed in its primary responsibility of protecting lives and properties.
“Clearly, we as APC government, at all levels, have failed Nigerians in the number 1 duty we were elected to do which is to secure lives & properties. Not a single day goes by without some sort of insecurity in this land. This is a shame! Deal with terrorists decisively or resign,” he had tweeted.
The former aide of Kano governor went missing hours after the tweet.
His father, Tanko Yakasai, said that unidentified security agents picked up his son.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) demands the immediate and unconditional release of Salihu Yakasai.
The party describes the reported arrest of Salihu by security operatives as well as his alleged detention in a secret facility, just after his criticism against the Buhari administration’s failures in the
fight against banditry in our country, as completely unacceptable.
The PDP said in a statement by its Spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, that “Salihu Yakasai’s ordeal is a sad reminder of the sudden disappearance of another known critic of the Buhari administration, Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Abu Hanifa Dadiyata, since August 2019.
“The PDP reminds agents of the APC-led administration that Nigeria is a democratic nation and that the rights of citizens, including their freedom of expression, within the ambit of the law, are firmly
guaranteed in the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and as such, must be respected.
“Our party therefore rejects the arrest of Salihu Yakasai, for joining other patriotic Nigerians in demanding a Presidential commitment of a decisive action to rescue the abducted Zamfara schoolgirls as well as to end all acts of terrorism in our country.
“The PDP also condemns the decision of the Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Umar Ganduje, in summarily relieving Salihu Yakasai of his appointment as his Special Adviser on media, on the ground that his patriotic demand for a decisive action to end terrorism, was contrary to the stand of the
APC government.
“It is also instructive to note that Governor Ganduje equally warned all political appointees and public servants in the state against such patriotic expressions like those made by Salihu. The action of the Governor Ganduje has again heightened apprehensions on the alleged connections between APC leaders and the bandits pillaging our nation.
“In this regard, the PDP demands that Governor Ganduje comes clean on the matter. This is because such stances have continued to embolden bandits while frustrating patriotic citizens who are raising voices against acts of terrorism in our country.
“The PDP charges Nigerians to hold the APC and its leaders responsible for the escalated acts of banditry and terrorism in our country as well as any harm that suddenly comes the way of well-meaning citizens who are raising their voices against the activities of outlaws in our nation.”