The popular minds say “history is an albatross slung across the shoulders of nations: those that remember history are apt to copy it; those that forget it are condemned to repeat it; and those that seek to rewrite it may eventually be condemned and forgotten by it.”
Baba Yola needs no introduction in Bauchi State. He’s a household name—but not for good. A notorious police officer that is stubborn, brutal and damned dangerous not only to victims of his brutality—but equally to an administration of Bala Mohammed that came to power through popular votes.
In the built-up to the 2019 general elections, many in Bauchi may recall how the incumbent governor exchanged verbal punches with Baba Yola who was desperately protecting the regime of MA Abubakar even when it was evident that the then governor was so much hated by the people of Bauchi State for non-performance.
When Bala Mohammed won the elections against all odds—defying the “intrigues of MA Abubakar” and his apologists such as Baba Yola, what many expected at the time was that Bala Mohammed, being the number one security officer in Bauchi State will immediately request that the notorious police officer be transferred to another state or get him face the wrath of the law for his alleged brutalities on innocent souls especially during the elections period—where many were harassed, beaten and intimidated by the same Baba Yola.
WikkiTimes still retains some of the videos of demonstrators who rejected the then administration requesting Bala Mohammed to get the police officer punished.
For instance, a statement signed and issued to Journalists on the 18th of February 2019 by the People’s Redemption Party PRP, Falalu Bello, its National Chairman accused Baba Yola of unwarranted harassment.
““The attention of the national leadership of the PRP has been drawn to the persistent, illegal and unwarranted harassment of the leadership and members of the People’s Redemption Party in Bauchi State by the Nigeria Police, especially the Rapid Response Unit under the leadership of one SP Mohammed Baba Yola.
“On 14th February 2019, the said SP Mohammed Baba Yola led a team of policemen to arrest, for no legitimate or legal reasons, 22 leading members of the PRP in Bauchi State, in the house of Alhaji Shehu Abdullahi, Wakilin Birni, who is also the party’s candidate for the House of Representatives seat in the election,” Bello was quoted as saying.
The ruling People’s Democratic Party, then an opposition party in the state also had its own taste of Baba Yola—who repeatedly maltreated members of the opposition on what many believe was at the instance of MA Abubakar.
Rightly or wrongly, it’s indeed very difficult for people to believe that Baba Yola is not acting at the instance of people in corridors of power.
The partial lockdown occasioned by the covid-19 pandemic has offered the untiringly unapologetic and brutal Baba Yola the opportunity to scale up his viciousness on the citizens of Bauchi State in the name of enforcing the Okada ban and order 001 that mandated citizens to wear facemasks, aimed at preventing the spread of the virus.
Civil rights groups such as PIDI-Nigeria have received enormous letters of complaints on the said officer for allegedly and persistently wrecking havoc on innocent citizens in the name of enforcing the order signed by the state governor months ago.
For instance, the organization in a petition it sent to the commissioner of police, Bauchi State command on the 8th of May, 2020, accused Baba Yola of illegally raiding market and arresting “businessmen (petty traders) and Students” on a brought day light “when business activities was still going on while some were arrested at their various residents”.
PIDI Nigeria also accused Baba Yola of illegally arresting students of the Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic who were forced to call their parents to secure their release on stricter bail conditions—where they were allegedly extorted huge amounts of money in order to get them released.
PIDI also cited instances where two young boys—all below 18 years were arrested, molested, beaten and thrown like animals into Police Hilux van by the same Baba Yola.
The organization said depending on one bargaining powers, Baba Yola charges between N2,000 to N5,000 per head before his preys get released.
PIDI Nigeria says from its recent records, Baba Yola has collected the sum of N74,000 from different innocent people he illegally arrested—an omen that appears to be a money making venture for the police officer.
There is nothing perhaps that explains Baba Yola’s shenanigans rather than repeated musings of citizens at food and tea joints. Anytime his name flops up, people within Bauchi metropolis would have something to say about his brutality. It’s either one is directly a victim or one has a relative who has been a victim or at least one had listened to a conversation where his alleged brutality had been a topic of discussion.
The bashings from citizens, who had experience with Baba Yola, unfortunately goes directly to governor Bala Mohammed. Few images that trended a few days back where police officer was captured on Camera brutalizing a commercial motorcyclist and a picture of the governor laughing was embedded underneath that of the Okada man.
The subliminal message the owners of the pictures want to pass with their art, suggests that the brutality evident in the photo was ordered at the governor’s instance or at least the governor is happy about it.
Speaking truth to power has always remained a hardball for Journalists. But Journalists in Bauchi are lucky to have an administration that listens—an administration we all cherish for demonstrating frequently that it has the zeal to be driven by the dictates of the masses.
It’s on the basis of the foregoing that WikkiTimes called on Governor Bala Mohammed to investigate these allegations against Baba Yola and get him sanctioned if he’s found wanting.
Your Excellency Sir, with respect and real sense of responsibility, this medium note that Bala Yola maybe hell bent to put you at logger-head with your teaming voters—for, he’s not civil in his interactions with civilians as ought to have been the norm.
Unfortunately, the cost of his actions would directly affect you politically while he goes scot free.
Please do something about this your Excellency, establish the facts and address the anomalies.
Man is subjects to deny or rejection of favor. You seem to forget or ignore the good doing of Baba Yola in bauchi State. This man has changed the insecurities currently disturbing the sate, but you never praise him for that. You forget the fact that, this man cannot do anything out of the ampit of law. He is subjects to order by the state government. If what Baba Yola is doing is out of law, government would have dealt with him for long. But he follows order, so blame him not.