Without him, we wouldn’t have unmasked the dollar-hoarding mobile vault occupying the seat of power in Kano state. But Governor Umar Abdullahi Ganduje, whose corruption was caught on tape in a sting operation by Jaafar-owned Daily Nigerian newspaper, isn’t the man to play by the book. He’s demonstrably ruthless and, with the resources at his disposal, it’s instinctive for his perceived enemies to take precaution. But Jaafar’s flight for safety about two weeks ago isn’t an inhibition of startle reflex; it’s a conscious and necessary escape from a declared danger.
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On a March 19 interview with the BBC Hausa, Governor Ganduje gave a hint of the danger awaiting Jaafar. He had an unfolding plan to “deal with” those who released those videos of him stuffing dollars in flowing Babbar Riga, he shared. An alarmed Jaafar petitioned the then Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, over that broadcast threat to his life. In the heat of this tension, an associate of the journalist also reached out to draw his attention to unknown persons lurking around his residence. The men suspected to be “hitmen” weren’t only at his residence in Abuja, but also spotted at his Kano residence.