EXCLUSIVE: Jigawa Commissioner Sankara Collected N126Million Kickbacks From Contractors To Fund Governorship Election, Audit Report Reveals

SaharaReporters has exclusively obtained documents showing that Auwal Danladi Sankara, Jigawa State Commissioner for Special Duties, received kickbacks totalling N126 million from contractors between 2022 and 2023.

Multiple sources with direct knowledge of the matter have also confirmed the transactions.

Sankara, who served as Commissioner for Agriculture in the previous administration—when the current governor, Namadi Umar, was Deputy Governor—leveraged his position to demand kickbacks from contractors under the FADAMA project. The demanded kickbacks ranged between 50%, 30%, and 25%, according to the documents.

The documents obtained by SaharaReporters emanated from an audit of the FADAMA programme in Jigawa State.

The audit report noted that Sankara told contractors that "the Jigawa State government needed money to finance the Jigawa State gubernatorial elections in the state."

The report went on to indict Sankara as "directing contractors who supplied fertilisers and tube to pay 50% while the rest of the contractors must pay 25% while others were told they would need to pay 30% of the contract sum".

According to the report, he informed the contractors that the directive came from "higher authority."

At the time Sankara gave these instructions, Governor Namadi was the state’s Deputy Governor and was also in charge of supervising the FADAMA project.

Between September 2022 and June 2023, Sankara was reported to have collected N73 million into various company accounts linked to him.

An additional N53 million was reportedly collected in cash, in tranches. These funds were reportedly received from contractors at his residential/guest house located at Lamido Crescent, Kano.

In total, Sankara was said to have collected N126 million, representing 18.61% of the total amount disbursed to contractors, which was N678 million.

SaharaReporters exclusively obtained the receipts of the monies sent via transfer to Sankara-linked companies.

Interestingly, Sankara was only appointed commissioner by the previous administration under whom he committed these atrocities of collecting kickbacks in July 2022.

He started collecting kickbacks in October 2022, barely three months after he was appointed as a commissioner.

Documents seen by SaharaReporters show that companies and individuals linked to Sankara received 13 different payments via bank transfers. Documents show the following breakdown of the payments: On October 24, 2022, N16.7 million was transferred into the FCMB account of Three Stars Event Centre; on October 30, 2022, the same organisation received N7 million, followed by another N7 million on the same day; on October 19, 2022, it received N600,000 and on October 14, 2022, it received another N6.075 million.

Other payments included: On December 11, 2022, N6 million was paid into the UBA account of Sankara Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited.

On December 23, 2022, another N5 million was transferred to the same account. Also, on December 11, 2022, N6 million was received by the company.

On June 1, 2023, it received N2 million, and on November 4, 2022, N10 million was also paid into the account of Piccolo Lounge.

Companies, Individuals Traced to Auwal Sankara

SaharaReporters’ independent investigation, using open-source intelligence and corporate records, confirmed that Auwal Danladi Sankara is the beneficial owner of the companies that received the funds, as corroborated by the documents and multiple sources.

Sankara Oil and Gas Limited, registered in 2013 with RC Number 1145833, lists Auwalu Sankara, Nafiu Danladi Sankara, and Zainab Abdullahi Sankara as directors. The company is based in Kano.

SaharaReporters identified Nafiu Danladi Sankara, listed alongside Auwalu as a company director, as a politician based in Kano. He previously contested for the House of Representatives seat for the Taurani Local Constituency in 2019. A social network analysis also showed that Nafiu is connected to Auwal Sankara on Facebook.

Three Stars Event Centre, another company that received funds, was registered in 2018 in Kano, with RC Number 2568460. Auwalu Sankara is listed as the proprietor.

Piccolo Lounge, also a beneficiary, was registered in April 2019 with RC Number 2872940. Auwalu Danladi Sankara is again listed as the proprietor.

Another individual listed as a recipient of the funds is Saifullahi Dansabo, who received ₦700,000 into his UBA account on November 11, 2022. SaharaReporters traced him to the Facebook page of Commissioner Sankara, where he appears as a mutual friend under the name "Saif Dansabo."

Similarly, SaharaReporters identified another beneficiary, Usman Ibrahim Auwal, who received ₦1.075 million into his UBA account on the same date. He was traced to the same Facebook page, where he is listed as "Usman Ibrahim."

FADAMA Coordinator Made Scapegoat By Governor Namadi, While Sankara Was Spared

In January 2024, the Jigawa State governor announced the suspension of the FADAMA III Coordinator, Aminu Isah, and all 27 desk officers, over alleged embezzlement of funds.

However, Sankara, a close ally of the governor and someone indicted by FADAMA officials for collecting kickbacks, was spared and remained untouched.

The state’s spokesperson, Sagir Musa, confirmed the suspension, stating, "The State Executive Council deliberated on the Committee of Inquiry Report on NG-J-CARES Result Area 2: FADAMA presented before the Council and approved the immediate suspension of the State Coordinator and all the 27 LGAs Desk Officers of the NG-JCARES Result Area 2: FADAMA in the State."

In documents seen by SaharaReporters, Aminu Isa Ringim, the suspended coordinator, had informed the investigative committee that Sankara demanded kickbacks and collected N126 million.

Despite this testimony, the government chose to suspend Ringim, while leaving Sankara untouched.

Multiple sources told SaharaReporters that the act of sparing Sankara, especially when the funds were allegedly used to finance a governorship campaign, highlighted a blatant case of nepotism.

SaharaReporters contacted the state information commissioner, Sagir Musa; however, calls to his official contact were not responded to as of the time of filing this report.