Kano Govt Denies Administrative Paralysis, Says File Directive Was Fiscal Prudence.
By Bala Salihu Dawakin Kudu
Democracy Newsline, January 17, 2026.
The Kano State Government has firmly dismissed reports suggesting that Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf’s recent directive restricting the forwarding of official files to his office has led to administrative paralysis, describing such claims as inaccurate, misleading, and politically motivated.
In a statement issued on Friday, the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Umar F. Ibrahim, clarified that the directive was a temporary administrative measure rooted in fiscal responsibility and strict adherence to due process, rather than an attempt to stall governance.
According to the statement, the directive was issued toward the end of December 2025, a period when the state’s Appropriation Law for the outgoing fiscal year had expired and the 2026 budget was still undergoing legislative scrutiny at the Kano State House of Assembly.
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“At such a sensitive fiscal transition period, prudence, legality, and respect for due process demand restraint in executive approvals, particularly those with financial implications,” the government said.
The SSG explained that the temporary pause on forwarding new files to the governor’s office was designed to prevent unauthorized expenditures, illegal financial commitments, and potential audit or legal complications that could arise from approving new spending without a valid appropriation law.
“No new spending commitments should be undertaken in the absence of a valid appropriation law,” the statement stressed, noting that the action was in line with established public finance management principles.
The government rejected claims that the directive crippled state administration, insisting that governance continued uninterrupted. It assured residents that essential services—including security operations, healthcare delivery, education, environmental sanitation, and other statutory functions—remained fully operational under existing approvals and legal provisions.
Clarifying the scope of the directive, the statement noted that it only affected new discretionary matters requiring fresh executive approval, while routine administrative functions and legally backed expenditures continued as normal across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
The government further argued that the measure actually strengthened governance by compelling MDAs to operate strictly within their lawful mandates and by preventing the common end-of-year rush for approvals, a practice it said often undermines transparency and fiscal discipline.
“This was a responsible administrative and fiscal control, taken in the best interest of the state,” the statement said, describing the policy as an expression of foresight, discipline, and respect for the rule of law.
The clarification follows media reports alleging that Kano State was experiencing administrative gridlock after Governor Yusuf allegedly instructed MDAs to stop sending files to his office indefinitely. The reports also claimed that large volumes of untreated files had accumulated at the Government House since September and were later returned to MDAs.
More controversially, the reports linked the directive to alleged political activities by the governor, claiming he was preoccupied with meetings in Kano and Abuja ahead of a purported plan to defect from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
However, the state government dismissed these assertions as speculative and unfounded, emphasizing that the directive was formally communicated to commissioners by the SSG at the conclusion of the State Executive Council meeting held on December 18, 2025, and chaired by the governor, strictly within an administrative and fiscal context.
The statement concluded by assuring the public that once ongoing transitional administrative reviews are completed and the new fiscal framework is fully in place, appropriate directives will be issued to guide the next phase of executive operations.
Reaffirming its commitment to transparency, effective service delivery, and prudent management of public resources, the Kano State Government urged the media and the public to disregard what it described as deliberate misrepresentations aimed at politicizing routine governance decisions.
(DEMOCRACY NEWSLINE NEWSPAPER, JANUARY 17TH 2026)
