A former governorship aspirant in Zamfara State, Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi, has called on the administration of Governor Dauda Lawal to immediately publish former Governor Bello Matawalle’s handover note and transition committee report detailing the state’s gold purchases between 2020 and 2023.
Shinkafi warned that if the documents are not made public within 14 days through national newspapers, he would petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), and the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) to investigate the matter.
In a statement obtained by The News Chronicle on Thursday, Shinkafi said citizens have a duty to hold public office holders accountable, stressing that sovereignty belongs to the people.
He recalled that on October 24, 2020, former Governor Bello Matawalle presented 31 kilograms of gold and precious stones to then President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja under the Zamfara State Gold Reserve Initiative.
According to Shinkafi, Matawalle had stated that the gold was sourced and refined by local miners and that the initiative was aimed at strengthening the state’s financial base while blocking illegal channels through which gold was allegedly exchanged for arms.
He noted that President Buhari had commended the initiative, describing it as the first time Zamfara gold had been presented to him since assuming office.
Shinkafi, however, questioned the legality of the state government’s involvement in gold transactions, noting that the Federal Government had suspended all mining activities in Zamfara State from 2019 due to insecurity, with the ban remaining in force until it was lifted in 2025.
He argued that it had become necessary to determine the quantity of gold acquired with public funds and to establish where the assets under the Zamfara State Gold Reserve Initiative are currently being kept.
Shinkafi urged the present administration to publicly disclose the handover note and transition committee report showing details of the gold purchases and the status of the reserve initiative.
He warned that failure to make the documents available within 14 days would compel him to formally petition the EFCC, ICPC, NFIU and the Office of the National Security Adviser to investigate the legality of the former administration’s engagement in solid minerals activities during the period when mining operations had been suspended in the state.
