The Kebbi State House of Assembly has suspended the Chairman of Fakai Local Government Area, Muhammad Mahuta, after a probe linked him to alleged gross misconduct, illegal transactions and negligence of duty.
The decision was reached on Wednesday during plenary in Birnin Kebbi, following the adoption of the report of the House Special Committee led by Salihu Dangoje.
In the committee’s findings, Dangoje told lawmakers that the probe uncovered a string of questionable actions, including the removal and attempted sale of five electrical transformers, illegal allocation of government farmlands and inconsistencies in the rehabilitation contract of Mahuta Dam.
According to him, the chairman initially claimed the transformers were taken for servicing with the approval of a KEDCO official identified as Malam Nasir, who later failed to appear before the committee. Dangoje added that, “on November 14, the council chairman appeared before the committee and confessed to involvement in the misappropriation of the five transformers, which were intended to be sold to one Alhaji Kabiru Dauda at N2.5 million each.”
He explained that the panel found traces of fund transfers into specific accounts linked to the illegal transaction, reinforcing the allegation of deliberate wrongdoing.
The committee also reported irregularities in the disposal of government farmlands, saying due process was ignored and negligence by some council officials worsened the situation. It therefore recommended immediate revocation of the allocations.
On the Mahuta Dam project, Dangoje said the chairman’s claim that the contract was awarded to ZBCC was found to be false.
He noted that the project engineer “denied being awarded any contract” and explained that equipment was only hired while he was engaged to supervise.
The committee concluded that no company was formally awarded the contract despite payment of the contract sum.
Having established misconduct and negligence, the committee recommended a six-month suspension for Mahuta, immediate commencement of work on the dam, and a commendation letter for the NSCDC Divisional Officer in Fakai over his professional handling of the transformer case.
The motion to suspend the chairman was moved by Muhammad Buhari of Aliero Constituency and seconded by Nura Kangiwa of Arewa Constituency, after which the Speaker, Muhammad Usman, declared that the suspension takes immediate effect.
