. ‘Stop noisemaking’, Ganduje counsels El-Rufai against politicising evacuation of Almajiris

Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, Sunday charged his Kaduna State counterpart, Nasir El-Rufai to stop politicizing the evacuation of the Almajiris who had tested positive for COVID-19.

Ganduje, who made the call in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Abba Anwar, said what the children needed at this critical point was caregiving and not noisemaking and politicization of the issue.

El-Rufai had said earlier in the week that about 50 almajiris evacuated to the state from Kano had tested positive for COVID-19.

The statement read: “To put record straight on the movement of almajiris across states of the federation and how Kano embarks on the exercise.

“We agreed at the Northern Governors Forum that all almajiris be moved to their states of origin. That is why we are sending, in good faith and procedures, all almajiris that are not from Kano State to their respective states of origin.

“The exercise was not political and should not be politicized. The way we are sending back almajiris to their states of origin, we are also receiving almajiris from other states who are Kano indigenes. But the fact that we are not making noise about it does not mean they are all healthy without COVID-19 infections.

“Let’s make it categorically clear that, some of the almajiris brought to Kano during the exercise, are also COVID-19 positive, but we are not making politics out of it. Because we all believe that what they need most now, is not noise making or publicity. What they need at this critical point in time is care giving.

“People should also understand that these children were not infected in the process of transporting them to their respective states. So noise making is not fit as a way forward. All we are doing is simply to comply with the Northern Governors’ Forum decision that all almajiris in our states should be taken back to their respective states, simple.”