Hoodlums carrying machetes and swords reportedly disrupted a political rally held in Kaduna State where Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was canvassing for support.
A former Nigerian senator, Shehu Sani in a Twitter post, claimed that the miscreants invaded the rally venue with “swords and machetes.”
WikkiTimes recalls that Atiku came under criticism after his speech in Zaria, the capital of Kaduna State where he urged northerners to vote him against an Igbo or Yoruba candidate. The speech was interpreted as a move to garner support at the expense of public peace.
Labour Party’s Peter Obi and Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were also knocked for similar utterances in the past.
However, Mohammed Jalige, the spokesman for Kaduna Police Command was not available for comments about the incident. Neither did he respond to phone calls nor a text message sent to him.
ATIKU REACTS
A few minutes after Sani’s tweet, Atiku reacted to the incident, referencing the peace accord presidential candidates had signed to checkmate such scenarios of public disturbance. He urged President Muhammdu Buhari to intervene in the foregoing to restore normalcy.
“I have just received emergency reports of attacks on @OfficialPDPNig supporters by thugs sponsored to scuttle the ongoing PDP campaign rally in Kaduna State,” Atiku tweeted. “This is undemocratic and against the Peace Accord all parties signed up for just a few weeks ago.”
“I urge President Muhammadu Buhari to call on all parties to call their supporters and members to order and to ensure that campaigns, just as with the elections themselves, are kept free, fair and safe,” he added.
