The Nigerian Police Force has said that there was ‘no any attack by bandits either on villages or on any person or group of persons traveling in Zamfara State on Friday.
The Poolice said the story by Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar’s lawyer Chief Chris Uche, SAN, that witnesses they scheduled for Tribunal sitting on Friday afternoon were waylaid by armed men while on their way while coming from Zamfara was misleading and undermining.
Recalled that Vanguard and others reported that proceedings at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja came to abrupt end on Friday, as the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar, notified the panel that witnesses scheduled to appear and testify against President Muhammadu Buhari, were attacked by armed bandits.
Chief Chris Uche, SAN, had informed the tribunal that the matter could not continue in view of attack on the other witnesses.
“My lords information we just got is that some of the witnesses we scheduled for this afternoon were waylaid by armed men while on their way. They were coming from Zamfara.
“This is a matter in which our witness are coming from far places”, Chief Uche, SAN, told the court.
Corroborating the report, Atiku’s lead counsel, Dr. Livy Uzoukwu, SAN, said: “To confirm, I was the one that was called on the phone and I had to repeatedly go outside to receive the call.
“I was told that some of them jumped inside the bush and up till now most of them have not been seen while some were greatly injured.
“In the circumstance, we will continue on Monday”.
But the Zamfara state Police Command in a statement on Sunday titled ‘Re Tribunal Adjourns As Bandits Attack PDP,Atiku’s Witnessses” and signed by SP Mohammed shehu, Police Public Relations Officer, denied the reports saying :
’there was no any attack by bandits either on villages or on any person or group of persons traveling on any highway in the state.
‘Since the inception of the ongoing peace and dialogue initiative in the the state, attacks, kidnapping and other heinous crime in the state have been reduced drastically to about 98 percent.’
‘ Zamfara State Police Command further refuted the entire story and saying that it was misleading and a calculated attempt to undermine the current effort of both the state government and the police to bring lasting peace for social and economic development in the state.
The command uses this medium to appeal to media organizations to verify their information before publication.
The attention of Zamfara State Police Command has been drawn to the above captioned story published by one of the national dailies of Saturday 13th July, 2019, in which some witnesses who were traveling to Abuja from Zamfara claimed to have been attacked by bandits, a situation that forced them to scampered into the bush.
‘It is pertinent to categorically state that , as per the crime statistics of Zamfara state is concern, there was no any attack by bandits either on villages or on any person or group of persons traveling on any highway in the state. Since the inception of the ongoing peace and dialogue initiative in the the state, attacks, kidnapping and other heinous crime in the state have been reduced drastically to about 98 percent. A situation that restored peace and stability in the state.
The rescue of over 100 persons who were kidnapped and held in captivity for months by the Commissioner of police CP Usman Nagogo psc+, is another indication that the ongoing peace process of the command is working assidously.
‘Therefore, the command wishes to refute the entire story as misleading and a calculated attempt to undermine the current effort of both the state government and the police to bring lasting peace for social and economic development in the state.
The command uses this medium to appeal to media organizations to verify their information before publication.’
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