The police in Nasarawa State say the disagreement between the ruling PDP and the main opposition CPC which have led to series of violent attacks in Keffi is a brotherly quarrel, and needs not be overblown.
Keffi has witnessed rising violence more than any other part of the state, including Lafia, the capital, but there have been no arrest in any of the incidents. The police commissioner, Emmanuel Obiako, said yesterday that the issues were “minor’, and needed tact in handling so that they do not explode into major issues. “When two brothers quarrel, you don’t make arrests. You provide a direction so that they don’t collide again,” he said.

He confirmed the recent violent demonstration which left six official vehicles damaged, and part of the campaign office of Governor Aliyu Akwe Doma was destroyed on Thursday. The demonstration ended up in accusations and counter accusations between the ruling party and the main opposition CPC in what has put a cloud of doubt over the message of the demonstrators.

Youths poured into the streets of Keffi at about 10am of that day and barricaded major roads, chanting anti-Doma slogans as they marched to his campaign office along Old Akwanga Road where they destroyed a part. The violent youths also smashed some official vehicles including those of the police/military patrol outfit. No one was injured, just as no arrest was made.

The state Commissioner for Housing, Environment and Urban Development, Mohammed Yamusa Chindo blamed the incident on the CPC, naming the opposition party’s senatorial candidate, retired Major General Abdullahi Aboki and former minister, Mohammed Hassan Lawal, when he spoke with Weekly Trust.

“We were holding a meeting at the campaign office. I was also there at the meeting. It was General Aboki and Hassan Lawal’s boys that came and attacked us. They destroyed the office and smashed vehicles, security operatives did not do anything. I went to the DPO and the SSS, and nothing happened. Security agencies are protecting the CPC against us. How can CPC attack us and nothing happens?” the commissioner queried.

But in a reaction, the CPC senatorial candidate, General Aboki, denied knowledge of the youths who carried out the attack. He pleaded for time to go round Keffi for inquiries, and returned two hours later with the following comment. “I went close to the campaign office and I did not see any damage on it. If anybody carried out any attack on anybody, my humble self and Hassan Lawal know nothing about them. I came in from Abuja where I am residing, today, and I know that Hassan Lawal has not been in Keffi for more than a week. He has been with General Buhari. Whatever transpired today, I am sure, it must be part of the schemes of the PDP. Since my coming into politics, Abdullahi (his PDP opponent and former governor Abdullahi Adamu) has sworn he will fight me to finish. I accepted the fight if it is a fair game. There is nothing I have not done to talk to Abdullahi, we have been childhood friends. I can’t be anti-Abdullahi. But he has refused to accept me.

“You know we started late in the CPC. But today, Keffi and the neighbouring towns are 80 per cent CPC because people are daily defecting to join us. So we have gained grounds more than the PDP. Since then, Abdullahi and Yamusa have been sponsoring thugs to attack our supporters.

“They came with thugs from Kaduna and sent them round to machete our supporters. We have pictures to show this and we made formal and written reports to the police, SSS and the army. Abdullahi even vowed the other day that he would do anything, and I am told the Emir was not happy with him. Two days ago, his Kaduna thugs attacked our supporters and even destroyed my billboards in town. Yesterday, some Fulani people came and reported to me that they were macheted by his supporters because they defected to the CPC. We have also reported that to security agencies with pictures.

“We know their plan. They are only trying to seek a state of emergency in Keffi so that elections will not take place here. They are trying to implicate me and Hassan so that we will be picked by security. If anybody attacked them, why did they not report to security agencies? They don’t want the election to hold. We have been calling on our people not to be provoked into counter attack. Let us have the elections and enter office. That is all we want,” he added.

The state police commissioner, Emmanuel Adiako, told Weekly Trust that the trouble died down minutes after it started. He said no arrest was made and that nobody reported any attack or any case to them.