Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the alleged explosion at the campaign rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers state.
Darlington Nwauju, Rivers APC spokesperson, had alleged that there was an explosion on Thursday during the party’s governorship rally at Ojukwu field, Rumuwoji community in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
But Grace Iringe-Koko, Rivers police spokesperson, countered Nwauju, saying no explosion occurred — and that the incident was a clash between the community members and party supporters.
Reacting in a series of tweets on Thursday evening, the PDP presidential candidate said he “stands with the APC” and families of those injured.
Abubakar also said the should be no room for violence against political opponents.
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“There should be no place for violence and anti-democratic manifestations in this election,” he wrote.
“We’ve already committed to that in the peace pact we all signed up to.
“Elections are not a do-or-die affair but an opportunity to reinforce our belief in democracy through our leadership choices via adult suffrage.
“We had complained about the violence that had been visited on our party in some states because we did not want it to become a pattern if those engaged in anti-democratic activities were not brought to book.
“Our worst fears have now manifested with the explosion at the APC rally in Port Harcourt. It stands condemned.
“Elections and the choices we make should be about the ballot and not the bullet.
“On behalf of my team, I stand in solidarity with the APC and the families of the injured. I wish the injured a quick recovery.”
Abubakar also asked security agencies to ensure that “those behind this dastardly act, including their promoters” are brought to justice to serve as a deterrent to “copycats who may be emboldened to thread this same anti-democratic path”.
Meanwhile, the PDP candidate’s comment comes amid crisis in his party over the position taken by stakeholders led by Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers.
Wike and his allies have excluded themselves from the PDP presidential campaign over calls for Iyorchia Ayu to step down as national chairperson of the party.
The calls for Ayu’s resignation, according to the PDP stakeholders, are based on the grounds that the PDP presidential candidate and the national chairperson cannot be from the same region.
Five children trapped inside abandoned car in Minna die
Five children have reportedly died of suffocation in an abandoned vehicle in the Albishiri area of Minna, Niger State.
The children were said to have gone missing on Sunday morning before they were found dead at 6pm on the same day.
One of the children was said to be a child of the owner of the car while another one was the child of a neighbour.
The remaining three were siblings, belonging to one Abdullahi Etsu of Etsu-tasha, from the Albishiri area.
Spokesman for the police command in Niger, Wasiu Abiodun, confirmed the incident in a statement on Monday.
He said the children were between the ages of five and 13.
Abiodun said the children were found trapped in a Honda Civic vehicle in the area.
He stated, “On 21/4/2024 at about 6.30pm, based on information received at Kpakungu Div, five children of about 5-13 years of age were found trapped in a Honda Civic vehicle with Reg No. GO 778 ABC at Albishiri area of Minna,” the statement reads.
“They were found to have suffocated in the vehicle, while their bodies were later removed by the various Parents, as Police visited the scene.
“However, the owner of the vehicle was invited for questioning, as the unfortunate incident is under investigation.”
FG summons Abuja Chinese supermarket owner to tribunal over discrimination
Director of Surveillance and Investigation at the FCCPC, Boladale Adeyinka, disclosed this on Monday after sealing off the outlet.
She affirmed that the owner of the supermarket, Cindy Liu Bei, had fled before the arrival of the agency’s officials.
The FCCPC officials stormed the supermarket on Monday, April 22, 2024, barely 24 hours after the discriminatory practices of the outlet were reported on social media by Nigerians.
Four vandalised towers disrupt power supply to Gombe, Yola, Jalingo
The TCN General Manager, Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, disclosed this on Monday in a statement shared on the company’s official X handle, along with pictures of the vandalised towers.
According to the statement, the TCN noted that when the 330kV transmission line tripped, its operators attempted to restore it to service but it tripped again, prompting the dispatch of TCN lines men to trace the line to detect and rectify the fault.
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It said, “While fault tracing, TCN’s engineering crew discovered that towers 288, 289, 290, and 291 were vandalised and that some tower members were carted away. Also, the towers had equally collapsed as a result of the incident. Presently, bulk power supply to Gombe, Yola, and Jalingo substations have been disrupted, affecting bulk power supply to parts of Yola and Jos Electricity Distribution Companies’ franchise areas.’’
The TCN however stated that it was trying to first backfeed Gombe through its 132kV transmission line from Bauchi and subsequently Ashaka, Potiskum, Damaturu, and Billiri/Savannah, to mitigate the effect of the incident on electricity consumers affected by the incident.
The company assured that it would do everything to ensure restoration of electricity to the affected areas, while efforts were made to reconstruct the four vandalised towers.
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