Kano residents protest 'planned demolition' of bridge built by 'opposition' MP
Residents of Gwarzo town in Kano North Senatorial District are protesting the “planned demolition” of a bridge built by an opposition MP.
The bridge around the town of Gwarzo was washed away three weeks ago after torrential rain.
Residents of the area then appealed to Senate Deputy Speaker Barau Jibrin, who is the region's representative in the Senate, to help them repair the damaged bridge.
Mr. Jibrin is a member of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) party in the state.
They said Mr. Jibrin responded quickly and repair work on the bridge was completed on Friday.
A driver, Sule Wanzam, who witnessed the protest, said residents began protesting on Friday after learning that the Kano state government was apparently planning to demolish the bridge in order to build one a better. The protest continued Saturday morning.
The bridge is strategic as it is along the road leading to the residence of the vice-governor from Gwarzo town, Mr. Wanzam said.
“The bridge is connected to the residence of Deputy State Governor Aminu Abdulsalam, which has offended some government officials and members of his party (New Nigeria People Party) in the city over the rapid construction of the bridge. by Mr. Jibrin, member of the All Progressives Congress (APC). »
Residents called the “planned demolition” of the bridge a policy.
The incident caused tension in the region on Friday and Saturday as supporters of the two main parties, the APC and NNPP, pointed fingers at each other.
The APC members present in the city have sworn not to allow the demolition of the bridge.
When reached for comment, State Works Commissioner Marwan Ahmad said the state has not yet decided the fate of the bridge.
He explained that Mr. Jibrin had not obtained permission before repairing the bridge, which is on a state government road.
“It’s the job of the state government, but they took the lead. Even then, they should have sought our approval (from the state government) before embarking on the project of the state government,” Ahmad said.
“This is not a delay on the part of the state government in repairing the bridge, the (state) government has a bureaucracy, we have completed all the processes and we were about to start work when they went and started.< /p>
“The problem stemmed from the reluctance to ask for approval before starting work. If they had asked for our approval, we would have informed them of our level of commitment regarding the repair of the bridge.
"I cannot say whether the structure will be demolished or not until the government decides on the next steps," Ahmad said.
But one of Senate Deputy Speaker Muktar Gora's aides said the local government council had accepted the lawmaker's request to embark on the projects.
“The local government council has approved our request. This is emergency work affecting the lives of locals, and we cannot cross our hands to see our people suffer. We have decided to undertake the emergency work following the request of ...
Residents of Gwarzo town in Kano North Senatorial District are protesting the “planned demolition” of a bridge built by an opposition MP.
The bridge around the town of Gwarzo was washed away three weeks ago after torrential rain.
Residents of the area then appealed to Senate Deputy Speaker Barau Jibrin, who is the region's representative in the Senate, to help them repair the damaged bridge.
Mr. Jibrin is a member of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) party in the state.
They said Mr. Jibrin responded quickly and repair work on the bridge was completed on Friday.
A driver, Sule Wanzam, who witnessed the protest, said residents began protesting on Friday after learning that the Kano state government was apparently planning to demolish the bridge in order to build one a better. The protest continued Saturday morning.
The bridge is strategic as it is along the road leading to the residence of the vice-governor from Gwarzo town, Mr. Wanzam said.
“The bridge is connected to the residence of Deputy State Governor Aminu Abdulsalam, which has offended some government officials and members of his party (New Nigeria People Party) in the city over the rapid construction of the bridge. by Mr. Jibrin, member of the All Progressives Congress (APC). »
Residents called the “planned demolition” of the bridge a policy.
The incident caused tension in the region on Friday and Saturday as supporters of the two main parties, the APC and NNPP, pointed fingers at each other.
The APC members present in the city have sworn not to allow the demolition of the bridge.
When reached for comment, State Works Commissioner Marwan Ahmad said the state has not yet decided the fate of the bridge.
He explained that Mr. Jibrin had not obtained permission before repairing the bridge, which is on a state government road.
“It’s the job of the state government, but they took the lead. Even then, they should have sought our approval (from the state government) before embarking on the project of the state government,” Ahmad said.
“This is not a delay on the part of the state government in repairing the bridge, the (state) government has a bureaucracy, we have completed all the processes and we were about to start work when they went and started.< /p>
“The problem stemmed from the reluctance to ask for approval before starting work. If they had asked for our approval, we would have informed them of our level of commitment regarding the repair of the bridge.
"I cannot say whether the structure will be demolished or not until the government decides on the next steps," Ahmad said.
But one of Senate Deputy Speaker Muktar Gora's aides said the local government council had accepted the lawmaker's request to embark on the projects.
“The local government council has approved our request. This is emergency work affecting the lives of locals, and we cannot cross our hands to see our people suffer. We have decided to undertake the emergency work following the request of ...
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