Zamafara State Government says it has recovered 40 vehicles from the immediate past governor of the state, Bello Matawalle.
A Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the State Governor, Suleiman Idris, disclosed this in a statement on Friday.
He said the vehicles were recovered by security agents who raided the residence of the former governor in Maradun area, yesterday.
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In a Tweets post on Friday, a chieftain of All Progressives Congres (APC) and ally of the former governor, Femi Fani-Kayode accused the new administration in Zamfara of raiding “his friend and brother’s house.” He claimed that the raid was without a court warrant, adding the officers were acting on the directive of the new governor of Zamfara State.
“This morning a detachment of policemen raided the home of my brother, the former Gov. of Zamfara state, Bello Matawalle in Maradun. They claimed to be looking for cars. They did not have a search or arrest warrant or court order and they claimed to be acting on the orders of the new Governor. This is unacceptable. It is not only vindictive but also lawless and it stands condemned. I call on the IGP to call the officers that are involved to order. The abuse of power and the persecution of political opponents and adversaries has no place in Asiwaju’s Nigeria,” he tweeted.
Suleiman countered the APC chieftain, saying a search warrant was obtained from the court before the raid.
“The police acted on a court order, and a search warrant was obtained for the operation. Over 40 vehicles were recovered, including three bulletproof vehicles and eight SUVs,” he stated. “We want to reaffirm our commitment to recover all that belongs to the people. Our common resolve is to rescue and rebuild Zamfara. Recovering the proceeds of crime and public assets is a critical part of our rescue mission.”
He further averred that a complaint was lodged with the police on “overriding public interest on wasteful looting of valuables including official vehicles.”
He stressed that the present administration of Lawal Dauda is determined to recover all the state’s properties
The incumbent Zamfara State governor, Dauda Lawal, had earlier given his predecessor, Matawalle, an ultimatum of five days to return the vehicles allegedly taken away by officials of his administration before handing them over to the new governor.
