•Bello Matawalle and Governor Idris
The Zamfara State government has expressed serious concern about the harassment of opposition figures within the state using federal might.
However, the government said that it is left with no other option but to bring to public notice how the Minister of State for Defence has allegedly used the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) to harass and intimidate the opposition, reports The Guardian.
In a statement by the spokesman to the Zamfara State Governor, Sulaiman Bala Idris, made available to journalists in Kaduna, he said, “We received a shocking and distressing message that Saleem Abubakar, a technical assistant in the office of the Zamfara State Governor, was abducted in Abuja yesterday.
“The illegal abduction was said to be carried out by a special forces unit from the office of the National Security Adviser.
“The most unfortunate and worrying part of the abduction of Saleem Abubakar is that it was syndicated through the office of the NSA by the State Minister for Defence, Bello Matawalle.
“The abductors, without an arrest warrant, took Saleem to an unknown location, which we later found out they moved him from to different facilities to cover their tracks.
“This is a perilous precedent that all Nigerians must strongly condemn. No amount of desperation is worth compromising the neutrality of the security.
“We cannot afford to fold our arms and watch the highest security office of the country being used as a tool of political persecution. We call on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to call the office of the National Security Adviser to order. Such reckless actions are detrimental to Nigeria’s reputation.
“If the Defence Minister or the abductors of Saleem Abubakar from the National Security Adviser’s office have any problem with him, they should charge him in court instead of abducting him. We are closely monitoring this case of federal impunity and will follow it to a logical conclusion, ensuring that justice is served.”
