The Bauchi State Police Command has confirmed that one person was killed and one other injured in Akuyam, Misau Local Government Area, when the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in the state, Sadique Abubakar, and his team visited the area to campaign.
Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, the command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Ahmed Wakil, said the deceased died on Tuesday morning at the Federal Medical Centre, Azare, in Katagum Local Government Area of the state, while the other victim was still receiving treatment at the hospital where they were both rushed to.
He said, “Yesterday at 8.30pm, the governorship candidate of the APC, Air Marshal Abubakar Sadique, was on his way from Dambam Local Government Area to Akuyam for a campaign. On reaching Akuyam town, his entourage was attacked.
“As a result of that, his escorts opened fire and two persons namely Saleh Garba, aged 35 years, and Yakubu Yunusa, 20 years old, all of Akuyam Village were shot and were evacuated to the Federal Medical Centre, Azare, for treatment.
‘Today (Tuesday), we received a confirmation that one of them was dead while receiving treatment.”
The spokesperson added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Aminu Alhassan, had directed a discreet investigation into the incident.
Reacting, the governorship candidate’s media aide, Salisu Barau, blamed the attack on the opposition.
He said about 15 to 20 cars were destroyed during the clash.
In Rivers State, the campaign train of the APC governorship candidate, Tonye Cole, was attacked in Opobo town Opobo/Nkoro LGA on Tuesday, with a member of the party kidnapped and later released.
These came as three members of APC on a door-to-door campaign in Omuma LGA were inflicted with machete cuts amidst alleged threats that the party would not be allowed to carry out its scheduled campaign rally in the area.
The party leader in Omuma Local Government Area, Onyekachi Ojiegbe, has raised the alarm on the activities of thugs in the LGA.
Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt, the state capital, Ojiegbe said the activities persisted despite 17 petitions written by the party to the state Commissioner of Police, Okon Effiong, and the Deputy Commissioner of Police, State Criminal Investment Department.
He appealed to the Inspector-General of Police to set up a special crack team in Omuma and the state in general before the elections.
Meanwhile, the state police command said it had launched an investigation into the attack on the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Magnus Abe, on Monday.
Spokesperson for the command, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, in a statement, described the incident as a pre-rally attack.
