A Contested Space: Divisions, Conflicts and Complexities of Kofar Ruwa Motor Park, Kano

Nura Ibrahim Hassan (1) , Danladi Abah (2) , Feyi Ijimakinwa (3)

1 BUK - Bayero University Kano
2 Benue State University, Makurdi.
3 University of Ibadan

Divisions, conflicts and power struggles are some of the complexities that threaten the effective governance of public urban spaces especially motor parks in Nigeria. This paper examines the governance of motor parks in Kano Metropolis. The study focused on Kofar Ruwa Motor Park, reputed to be the largest in Kano. It is located around the ancient city gate of Kofar Ruwa in Dala Local Government Council. The methodology adopted consists of indepth interview, observations and secondary data. The analysis is exploratory and qualitative. The findings of the study show that, though the local government is the statutory owner of the motor park, unobvious divisions, complexities and conflicts involving the different actors and interests are at play in the governance and operations of this strategic public space. Its socio-cultural and economic significance in the inter-state and national passenger movements, as revealed in the findings, attests to the position of Kofar Ruwa Motor Park. The quest for space acquisition by the Local Government Council at the expense of parking spaces in the motor park for the erection of shops for revenue drive and the constant change of power of revenue collection between different competing parties and the associated multiple taxations on this socio-economic space due to power play and politics reconfigures Kofar Ruwa Motor Park into a precarious entity of uncertainty of a mixture of landuses.

Keywords: Motor Park; Politics; Unions; Local government; revenues; taxation

Domains: Political science

Nura Ibrahim Hassan, Danladi Abah, Feyi Ijimakinwa. A Contested Space: Divisions, Conflicts and Complexities of Kofar Ruwa Motor Park, Kano. [Research Report] IFRA-Nigeria Working Papers Series 53, IFRA-Nigeria. 2019, pp.1-14. ⟨hal-03313377v1⟩