I watched the BBC interview with Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje OFR, Khadimul Islam, the Governor of Kano in awe. The overall impression is courage. The interview was flawless. On his part, the Governor proved that he is courageous and bold.

Moreover, he was at his best, a master at his game, the game of serving humanity. Thus he provided insight into some of the most frequently asked questions. First up, is the issue of Kano City Wall and the controversy around its commercialization. With his definite answer, one hopes that he’d put to bed all those rumors making the rounds on the grapevine that it was sold. He made his vision known to millions who watched the interview that structures were erected around the “ganuwa” to preserve it. At least we hope, this be the last we hear on this. Actually, it should because he is the sine quo non in this matter- the be all, end all. And he’s made the clarification.

Unless we are not asking to get clarification, but to malign and drag people’s name in the mud. To this I would say, it is an insulting waste of time to continue addressing the same issue every day, any time. It should just be left to wax and die or live. Whichever way it goes, The Governor is on course.

Another issue that the Governor addressed that is impressive and bold is the issue of the dollar video. He said the video was fabricated and politically motivated. I hope we get this message. In this world of technology, we could do anything. But the underlining issue here is- we should not cross all boundaries just to score a political point. For even when we succeed, the guilt will eat at our moral fabric, leaving us a shallow image of what we once were. However, when we loose, like the dollar video had, we have two issues to deal with- outside the guilt we have to contend with the consequence of our actions, and it is as a result of the choice we make. We can choose to be upright and do the right thing. We can do politics that is issue based and write our names in gold in the annex of history.

Furthermore, we should also remember that none of us is as clean as we assume we are. Just scratch beneath the surface, and probably we won’t like what we see. Do we need any example? Take the recent case of Mahdi Shehu and the Katsina State Government and you will know what I am talking about.

For those not following social media trends, Mahdi Shehu is an activist who supposedly receives intel from within the Katsina State Government House exposing shady deals, and he will be loud in his criticisms of the Government in the media. The only snag is that the people supplying him with the information were not factual. They just saw an avenue to make easy money so they sent him all kinds of trash with which he was nabbed and arrested. The most interesting thing is after the trial and bail, some facts emerged, facts not in his favor. A certain magazine published some “bad deeds” conducted by him, accumulated over the years. Thus he came crashing down like a pack of cards.

This could actually happen to anyone of us- especially if we make character assassination in the name of politics a favorite fast time. Therefore I say, before we go out to accuse somebody of bad deeds, we may want to look at our own backyard. And we should ask ourselves if it is worth it.

Moreover, they say, he who assert must prove. So far, the case had not been proven in any competent court of law, so it stands false, until proven. And that is exactly what the Governor said. Sincerely, I hope it sufficed for all the questions on peoples’ lips.

With these, I congratulate Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the Executive Governor of Kano State, for a successful media outing. It is courageous and bold and patriotic too. Weldone Sir.