Former Zamfara governorship candidate and All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain, Dr. Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi, narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in Abuja on Friday,
The attack occurred shortly after Friday mosque prayers when masked gunmen in a black Prado Jeep, without a number plate, blocked and targeted his vehicle.
Shinkafi recounted the harrowing incident to journalists in Abuja on Saturday, urging the Inspector General of Police and the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) to investigate and bring the perpetrators to justice.
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He stated, “My life was threatened today when some persons dressed in black, wearing masks, and carrying big guns blocked and attacked my car after Friday Mosque prayers in Abuja and zoomed off.”
Highlighting the violation of his constitutional rights, Shinkafi said, “This attack is a violation of my fundamental rights as enshrined in Chapter IV of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended, including the right to life, right to dignity of human person, right to personal liberty.”
He added, “It also infringes on my right to private and family life, and right to freedom of expression.”
Shinkafi linked the assassination attempt to his outspoken stance on national security, particularly his call for families of kidnapped victims in Zamfara not to pay ransom.
He stated, “This attack may not be unconnected with my views on national security, particularly in Zamfara State, where I urged families of kidnapped victims not to pay ransom as bandits used the funds to acquire more sophisticated weapons for their attacks on innocent citizens.”
He further appealed to the military to intensify operations against criminal groups nationwide.
“I called on the military to intensify their operations to flush out these criminal elements in the North West in particular and the entire nation, which will make the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu easier,” Shinkafi said.
He also noted that his anti-ransom stance had drawn threats from notorious bandit kingpin Turji Bello.
Adding further, he stated, “Nigeria is the only country we have; we must join hands to make it great again in the spirit of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.”
