*Supporters Name Police Officer Allegedly Taking Sides, Urge IGP To Punish Errant Personnel
*Vow To Continue To Give ‘Headache’ To Gov Sani Till Level Political Space Arrives
*Mum’s The Word From State Police Authorities
By Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
Tension rose high in Kaduna yesterday as security operatives clashed with supporters of opposition African Democratic Party (ADC) during a rally in the state capital, Kaduna.
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar is the presidential candidate of ADC, a party seeking to oust President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from office in next year’s general elections.
Kaduna State governor Uba Sani and Tinubu belong to the same political party.
There were no recorded casualties during yesterday’s clash, but an eyewitness said police fired teargas canisters at the rally, sparking pandemonium as party supporters and passers-by scampered for safety in all directions.
Some eye witnesses alleged that security operatives were seen using whips to flog persons at the scene at Warff Road and Muhammadu Buhari Way about 5:00pm.
The allegations, over which the State Police Command has remained mute, raises fresh public concerns over need to enforce the constitutional impartiality of security agencies in handling political activities so as not to spark possible crisis that can jeopardize the 2027 general elections.
Our correspondent who witnessed the concluding parts of the clash reports that a large number of police operational vehicles with numerous police personnel were sighted deployed to the scene.
Some of the fleeing ADC supporters were seen with the party’s governorship flagbearer Isa Ashiru Kudan’s posters and flyers.
Giving their own account of what happened, they told People&Politics that they were on sensitization rally to mark the commencement of Governorship and House of Assembly campaigns in accordance with election guidelines rolled out by electoral umpire Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), when security agents blocked them.
They explained that the rally, which featured a walk, was peaceful, starting from Murtala Mohammed Square until somewhere along Warff Road, where supporters were allegedly attacked by security operatives especially vigilantes of the Kaduna Vigilante Service (KADVIS) who accused them of trying to block the road.
Contacted through phone calls and Short Message Service (SMS), the State Police Command spokesman, Assistant Superintendent (ASP) Mansur Hassan neither took the calls nor responded to the messages, as of press time.
However, the State Chairman of ADC, Hon. Tijani Mustapha confirmed the clash, but pointed accusing fingers at KADVIS.
He said his accusation was based strictly on personal accounts related to him by party supporters at the scene as well as videos obtained from many people.
Mustapha said he was out of town when the incident occurred but added that he was furnished with some videos, images which he said he subsequently forwarded to journalists.
With tension high, ADC youths organized an emergency press conference, same Wednesday, alleging police clampdown on supporters of the party’s governorship candidate.
The youth accused security agencies of disrupting their solidarity rally, alleging that security operatives, including KADVIS personnel, prevented them from holding the rally after they had reportedly obtained approval from relevant authorities.
Addressing the press conference in Kaduna, leader of the ADC youth groups, Ibrahim Sanusi Maikudi, described the incident as an attempt to intimidate opposition supporters and restrict their constitutional right to peaceful assembly.
Maikudi alleged that the security operatives deployed to the area were led by a Police officer whom he identified as Usman Abindiga.
He said: “We planned to hold a solidarity walk for our principal. As we all know, today is the beginning of the governorship campaign season of 2027.
“We sought approval from all relevant authorities, including the police, the Road Safety Commission and the Red Cross to assist with unforeseen circumstances.
“But to our surprise, when we came out, we saw about 30 trucks of Nigerian Police with KADVIS.”
The ADC youth leader alleged that the security personnel attempted to disrupt the gathering and intimidate some of the participants.
He appealed to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to investigate the conduct of the security personnel involved, particularly those he identified as allegedly orchestrating the disruption of peaceful assembly.
Vowing to continue to participate in political processes ahead of 2027, Maikudi said the youth would not be deterred from supporting Kudan, insisting that opposition supporters had remained resilient despite what he described as previous attempts to frustrate their political activities.
He said: “Most of us are teenagers; some of us just finished university. These are the people that Uba Sani is afraid of.”
Maikudi further alleged that the incident was part of a pattern of disruption of opposition activities in the state, claiming that similar incidents had occurred at political activities led by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai.
“This is not the beginning. It started right from the day we were in the SDP. They attacked Malam Nasir El-Rufai and us in Kaduna. They did the same in Zaria.
“Last year, these people arrested people, stopped and disrupted events more times than I can count. Until today, we are still coming out,” he noted.
Legal Action Underway
The youth leader said the group was preparing legal action over the alleged disruption, adding that details of the planned action would be made public next week.
He vowed that the incident would not discourage the youth from campaigning for Kudan, saying they were determined to mobilise support for the ADC candidate ahead of the election.
“We will assure every Kaduna State person that even if we are the only people remaining in ADC, we will still come out and give Uba Sani a headache,” Maikudi said.
He called on civil society organisations, media practitioners and other Nigerians to pay attention to what he described as the shrinking political space in Kaduna State.
“We want to call on all civil societies, media influencers and every right-thinking Nigerian that this is what is happening in Kaduna, and we must tell the world our story. Nobody is going to stop us,” he said.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Some of the vehicles used by security agents spotted at the scene … yesterday.
