By Hadiza Yusuf
The Kano State Government has rejected any move to convert parts of the historic Afforestation Programme Coordinating Unit (APCU) complex in Jambulo into private residential or commercial plots, insisting that the facility must remain for public environmental purposes.
The state Commissioner for Water Resources, Environment and Climate Change, Dr Dahir M. Hashim, stated this on Friday while addressing journalists in Kano.
Hashim described the complex as an important federal environmental facility that has played a key role in coordinating afforestation activities and training forestry personnel.
He said the government was concerned by reports that portions of the property had allegedly been allocated to private interests and that there were attempts to remove federal environmental agencies operating from the facility.
“The APCU complex was established in 1988 and has, for decades, served as a centre for coordinating afforestation activities and training forest guards and other forestry personnel,” he said.
According to the commissioner, the facility should not be regarded as abandoned government property, particularly following the relocation of the operational headquarters of the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW) from Abuja to Jambulo.
“The Kano State Government respects the authority of the courts and will not interfere with the judicial process. However, any attempt to convert this strategic environmental facility into private residential or commercial plots is against the overriding public interest,” Hashim said.
He stressed the environmental significance of the complex, noting that its mature trees help reduce heat, improve air quality, prevent erosion and support biodiversity.
Hashim warned that the destruction or fragmentation of the green area would result in the loss of vegetation that had taken decades to develop.
He called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to review the reported alienation of the property and take appropriate legal steps to protect the entire complex.
The commissioner also urged the Federal Ministry of Environment to continue opposing any attempt to alienate the property and explore available legal options to preserve the facility.
He said the Kano State Government was prepared to support the Federal Ministry of Environment, NAGGW, the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) and APCU in safeguarding the complex.
“Our position is clear: public environmental assets must remain in public service,” Hashim said.
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