ABUJA, Nigeria – The senator representing Bauchi South Senatorial District, Shehu Buba Umar, has strongly refuted recurring allegations linking him to armed bandit kingpins and the sponsorship of violent criminality in Northern Nigeria, describing the claims as a malicious disinformation campaign orchestrated by desperate political adversaries, his media office announced in Abuja on Sunday, September 6, 2026.
The lawmaker dismissed viral video clips and social media claims alleging that high-profile bandit leaders visited his private residence or that he sponsored suspected criminal elements to undertake the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.
Okay News reports that Senator Buba, who currently serves as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Livestock and Animal Husbandry and is the Bauchi State governorship candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), disclosed that he has initiated comprehensive legal actions against those behind the smear campaign in domestic courts and across international borders.
The senator revealed that he submitted a formal criminal complaint to the Public Prosecutor at the Tribunal of First Instance in Niamey, Republic of Niger, through a licensed legal practitioner in the neighboring country, seeking the criminal prosecution of one Hassan Saleh Hussein for electronic defamation, insult, and cyberstalking.
“These claims must be subjected to proper evidentiary standards—not accepted merely because they appear in a viral video,” Senator Buba said. “Meanwhile, I have submitted a formal criminal complaint to the Public Prosecutor at the Tribunal of First Instance in Niamey, Niger Republic, through a legal practitioner in that country, seeking the criminal prosecution of Hassan Saleh Hussein for defamation and insult carried out via electronic communication.”
Buba noted that the smear campaign intensified significantly following his defection from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the PRP, under whose banner he is seeking the governorship of Bauchi State in the 2027 general elections.
“My decision to leave the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), under whose platform I am pursuing my gubernatorial aspiration, should be debated on policies, competence and vision—not on fabricated allegations,” Buba stated. “It is deeply unfortunate when acts of compassion or legitimate security-related contacts are stripped of context and repackaged as evidence of wrongdoing.”
Emphasizing his willingness to undergo open public assessment, the lawmaker maintained that civic scrutiny must be anchored strictly on credible facts rather than partisan blackmail.
“I welcome scrutiny, but scrutiny must be fair. I do not claim immunity from scrutiny,” he added. “As a senator, a former chairman of the senate committee on national security and intelligence, currently chairing the senate committee on livestock and animal husbandry, and now a gubernatorial candidate, I recognise that my actions and associations will be examined. That is democracy. But scrutiny must be based on facts. There is a difference between investigation and fabrication, between criticism and blackmail, and between political opposition and deliberate character assassination.”
Explaining his historical restraint regarding the allegations, Buba said his two-year tenure heading the Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence required strict operational confidentiality to prevent compromising ongoing intelligence gathering, protecting covert intermediaries, and avoiding harm to vulnerable rural communities.
“Nigeria cannot defeat insecurity by military force alone. Sustainable security requires winning the trust of vulnerable communities, strengthening local intelligence networks and creating pathways for cooperation with legitimate authorities,” Buba noted. “Some of these interventions cannot responsibly be discussed in detail. Revealing identities of intermediaries or operational information could endanger patriotic citizens and undermine ongoing efforts. My silence on such matters should never be interpreted as an absence of service.”
Urging media organizations, fact-checkers, and civil society groups to rigorously verify digital content before publication, the lawmaker vowed to deploy lawful instruments to protect his reputation while continuing his grassroots legislative and humanitarian outreach across Bauchi South.
