The Police Command in Gusau, Zamfara, confirmed the death of one man and the injuries of 18 others during a clash between members of two youth groups on Sunday.
Okay.ng learnt that the groups were suspected to be APC and PDP members in the state, according to the police.
SP Muhammad Shehu, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), confirmed the news in an SMS message to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gusau on Sunday.
“Discreet investigation into the case has begun aimed at ensuring that the perpetrators face the full wrath of the law,” Shehu said, confirming that the command had received a report of the killing.
However, the PPRO declined to comment further on the incident.
The PPRO’s confirmation came after the APC claimed that thugs hired by the PDP attacked and killed one man and injured 18 others without reason.
The APC’s claim is contained in a statement issued on Saturday in Gusau by Mr Yusuf Idris, Publicity Secretary.
“The attack with firearms perpetrated by PDP thugs is highly disheartening and concerning,” Idris said.
“The thugs disguised themselves as the PDP Zamfara Governorship candidate’s boys and opened fire on innocent youths carrying out their monthly sanitation work in the GRA area of Gusau, the Zamfara state capital.”
He claimed that the victims were attacked because they supported the APC.
“We are appealing to the state’s good citizens who have been enraged by the thugs to remain calm.”
“We would like to urge both the state government and security agents to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice as soon as possible to avoid retaliation,” he added.
Idris urged security agencies to investigate how and where the alleged attackers obtained such lethal firearms.
“A stitch in time saves nine,” he said, “and a word is always enough for the wise.”
Meanwhile, the state Deputy Governor, Sen. Hassan Nasiha, went to the Specialist Hospital in Gusau to check on the victims of the attack.
Nasiha told reporters that 18 young people were shot during the attacks.
He confirmed that one person was killed and that 18 others received varying degrees of bullet wounds.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), three of the victims with serious gunshot wounds were seen being treated at a specialist hospital.
He stated that the Zamfara Government announced a halt to campaign activities and rallies by political parties in the state due to the fear of such a breach of law and order.
The deputy governor, on the other hand, stated that the state government would investigate the matter and decide on the next course of action.
He vowed that the government would punish anyone found to be involved in the attack.
Nasiha expressed condolences to the victims of the incident and promised that the government would not sit back and watch it happen again.
Meanwhile, the PDP responded that its governorship candidate, Dr Dauda Lawal-Dare, had only a small meeting to receive defectors from the state’s 14 local government areas.
Alhaji Murkhtar Lugga, the party’s Deputy Chairman, stated shortly after the event that the party had received 50 defectors from each of the 14 local government areas.
On the issue of halting rallies, as announced by the state government, Lugga stated that the PDP’s activity was legal and in accordance with the Electoral Act 2022 as amended.
According to him, the party followed the guidelines and timetable established by the Independent National Electoral Commission for rallies and electioneering campaigns.
“We requested security, and the Commissioner of Police and the Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps deployed their men to ensure the success of our great party,” he explained.
Lugga expressed his displeasure with the actions of some criminal elements who allegedly attacked some PDP youths during the event.
He claimed that two of its youths were also shot in front of Dr Dauda Lawal Dare’s campaign office in the state capital.
The PDP officials led reporters around the emergency unit of the Specialist hospital, where two victims with fractured legs and other wounds were being treated.
Lugga, on the other hand, stated that the party would conduct an investigation into the alleged killing of an APC youth and injuring of 18 others and take appropriate action.
The vice chairman stated that the party was a law-abiding organization, assuring that their activities did not violate INEC guidelines.
“There was no information from INEC that political rallies or political events were being halted in Zamfara state,” Lugga said.
