Headlines
How Kano vigilante operatives ‘beat man to death’ over generator fuel
By Mukhtar Yahya Usman
Five vigilante operatives have been arrested by the Kano State Police Command for allegedly beating a young man to death after accusing him of trying to steal generator fuel.
Kano Focus reports that the incident happened in the early hours of Monday in Sharada Ja’en area of Gwale local government of Kano state.
It was learnt that the deceased, Mustapha Shehu Gwarzo and four of his friends, were chased by the vigilante members, who reportedly saw them in front of a generator set, with gallons and rubber pipes at midnight.
While his friends managed to escape, it was learnt that Mr Mustapha was not so lucky as the angry vigilante operatives caught up with him and allegedly beat him to coma.
Father of the deceased, Malam Shehu Gwarzo told Kano Focus that his son later died at Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital.
Mr Gwarzo however said his son was not a thief, but a watchman for the generator, who was killed by the vigilante operatives on his duty post.
“I received a call on Monday morning that my son was admitted in hospital after he was beaten by vigilante members, so I quickly rushed to the hospital and found him in coma,” he said.
He explained that when the incident was reported to a police station in Sharada area, the police invited the vigilante members and asked them to write a statement explaining how Mr Mustapha was beaten.
But Mr Gwarzo added that instead of narrating the correct version of the incident, the vigilante members allegedly changed the story by claiming that they handed over the victim to Civil Defense officials after arresting him.
“The vigilante commandant of the area had earlier admitted to me that what his men did to my son was wrong and asked me for forgiveness but to my surprise, when the matter reached the police criminal investigation department (CID),they changed the story and claimed that my son was beaten by Civil Defense officers, ” he said.
The spokesperson for the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corp (NSCDC) in Kano, ASC Ibrahim Idris Abdullahi, however denied the allegations.
Mr Abdullahi told Kano Focus that when the vigilante members approached civil defense officers and tried to hand over Mr Mustapha, the officers rejected the victim, after noticing that he had been severely beaten.
“Instead, our men told the vigilante operatives to take the victim to the hospital. It was not true that civil defense officers beat the deceased,” he said.
However, the Vigilante Commandant in Kano, Muhammad Kabir Alhaji told our correspondent that his men were on patrol when they saw five men standing close to a generator “trying to steal its fuel”.
Mr Alhaji added that when his men confronted the alleged fuel thieves, they tried to escape and one of them (referring to Mr Mustapha) fell into a gutter and got injured.
“Our men while on duty saw five people beside the generator with gallons and pipes trying to steal fuel from the generator, and my men tried to arrest them but they ran away” he said.
“As our members chased them, one of the suspects fell into a gutter and got injured. He was then taken to hospital where he later died,” Mr Alhaji added.
Spokesperson of the Kano Police Command, Abdullah Haruna Kiyawa, confirmed the arrest of the five vigilante members.
Mr Kiyawa, a deputy superintendent of police, said the Commissioner of Police Ahmad Iliyasu has ordered an investigation into the matter, adding that whoever is found wanting would be prosecuted.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano State Government says it has executed 1,508 development projects worth more than N928 billion across the state’s 44 local government areas since Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf assumed office, with about 80 per cent of constituency projects awarded between 2023 and 2025 already completed.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Commissioner for Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation, Comrade Nura Iro Ma’aji Sumaila, disclosed this during an international press briefing on the administration’s infrastructure development programme.
According to Comrade Sumaila, the projects cover critical sectors including roads, urban renewal, education, healthcare, security and other social infrastructure.
He said 799 of the projects have been completed, while 709 are at various stages of execution. He added that the state is also implementing 619 constituency projects through members of the Kano State House of Assembly.
The commissioner noted that about 80 per cent of the constituency projects have been completed. However, he said some projects remain unfinished because of rising construction costs caused by inflation.
He said the government has submitted a request to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf for an upward review of contract sums to enable contractors complete the affected projects.
Breakdown of projects
Comrade Sumaila said the administration spent over N169 billion on urban renewal projects, including road rehabilitation, drainage construction and other metropolitan infrastructure.
He said another N118 billion was committed to constructing five-kilometre roads in 38 local government areas to improve connectivity across the state.
According to him, the government also awarded contracts worth over N6.8 billion for the construction of Kano State Neighbourhood Watch security divisions in 36 local government areas.
He added that rural infrastructure projects covering education, healthcare and other social interventions across the 44 local government areas account for contracts valued at more than N397 billion, while other ongoing projects have a combined value of about N255 billion.
Commitment to transparency
The commissioner said the Ministry of Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation would continue to ensure compliance with due process and technical standards in the execution of government projects.
He said the ministry’s mandate includes monitoring projects to ensure value for money and prudent utilisation of public resources.
According to him, the administration’s investments in infrastructure are intended to improve mobility, strengthen security, expand access to education and healthcare, improve water supply and stimulate economic growth across the state.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as the highest-ranked sub-national government in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for education spending, according to the latest Sub-National Education Spending Index developed by the University of Paris.
KANO FOCUS reports that the ranking places Kano State first among 209 first-level sub-national governments across 15 ECOWAS member countries, underscoring the state’s growing reputation for prioritising investment in education.
According to the published index, Kano topped the rankings with an overall S-WAESI score of 87.21, outperforming other leading regions, including Dakar and Saint-Louis in Senegal. Lagos State was the second Nigerian state on the list, ranking 16th overall.
The assessment evaluated states and regions using the S-WAESI (Sub-National Weighted Aggregate Education Spending Index) methodology, which measures government commitment to education through indicators such as actual education expenditure, spending per student, budget execution, education priority, transparency and evidence-based reporting.
The methodology assigns 35 points to actual education spending, 25 points to spending per student, 20 points to budget execution, 10 points to education priority and 10 points to transparency.
The report indicated that Kano excelled largely due to its strong actual education spending and budget execution, making it the best-performing sub-national government in the region.
The ranking covered states, regions, districts and municipalities across Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Togo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde.
Kano State Accountability Forum on Education (K-SAFE) said the recognition reflects Kano State Government’s sustained investment in expanding access to education, improving school infrastructure and strengthening educational planning and budget implementation.
KANO FOCUS reports that the achievement is expected to further boost the state’s profile as a leader in education reform within West Africa and provide additional momentum for ongoing efforts to improve learning outcomes across the state.
The latest ranking comes amid renewed attention on education financing across ECOWAS, with experts increasingly emphasising transparent budgeting, efficient resource utilisation and sustained public investment as critical drivers of quality education.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the World Bank-supported HOPE Governance Programme after qualifying for a total of $3.5 million in performance-based incentives for implementing key governance, education and healthcare reforms.
KANO FOCUS reports that the World Bank, through the HOPE Governance Programme domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, approved $27 million in incentives for states that successfully met the Year Zero Disbursement-Linked Results (DLRs).
The National Coordinator of the HOPE Governance Programme, Assad Hassan, announced the incentives on Tuesday in Abuja during a retreat attended by commissioners, permanent secretaries and directors of budget and planning from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
A statement issued by the programme’s Communications Officer, Joe Mutah, said the incentives were based on the recommendations of the Interim Independent Verification Agent, which assessed states’ performance against agreed reform indicators.
Kano ranked among the highest-performing states, qualifying for incentives under three separate reform indicators.
The state will receive $1.5 million under Disbursement-Linked Result (DLR) 2.1 for adopting comprehensive guidelines for the preparation and submission of consolidated work plans for the state basic education budget.
It also qualified for another $1.5 million under DLR 2.2, which recognises states that adopted comprehensive guidelines for consolidated work plans for state primary healthcare budgets.
In addition, Kano secured $500,000 under DLR 2.3 for adopting harmonised budget guidelines and a unified chart of accounts for local governments.
Altogether, the state is expected to receive $3.5 million, making it one of the top-performing states under the programme.
Only five states—Bayelsa, Borno, Kano, Kebbi and Yobe—qualified for both the education and healthcare planning incentives, earning $3 million each from the two indicators alone.
Kano further distinguished itself by qualifying under the local government budgeting reform indicator, increasing its total allocation to $3.5 million.
The state also featured among 15 states that met the requirements under DLR 4.1, which rewards states for publishing their 2025 Citizens Budget for basic education and primary healthcare by February 28, 2025. Each qualifying state under this indicator will receive $500,000.
Other states that qualified under DLR 4.1 are Abia, Bayelsa, Borno, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, Ondo, Plateau and Yobe.
According to the programme, the performance-based incentives are designed to encourage states to strengthen governance systems, improve budget transparency and enhance planning in the education and primary healthcare sectors.
KANO FOCUS reports that the HOPE Governance Programme is a World Bank-supported initiative implemented through the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning to promote improved public financial management and better service delivery across Nigeria’s states.
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