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Tag: Adamawa State

  • Adamawa: troops neutralise Boko Haram terrorists in Michika

    The Army said on Tuesday that troops of 115 Task Force Battalion and 143 Battalion in two front coordinated attacks have successfully repelled Boko Haram terrorists in Michika, Adamawa State.

    According to the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Sagir Musa, scores of Boko Haram terrorists were neutralised during the encounter, with some of them fleeing with gunshot wounds.

    Colonel Musa said in a statement issued in Abuja that the terrorists attacked Michika late night on Monday, but were dealt with severely by troops who organized blocking positions against them.

    He said the terrorists also hurriedly made away with dead bodies of some of their fighters.

    Colonel Musa said: “Boko Haram terrorists met their Waterloo and suffered heavy casualties yesterday evening the 18th of March 2019 when they attempted to infiltrate Michika in Adamawa State.

    Read Also: Boko Haram terrorists attack Adamawa community

    “At about 7.20 pm, gallant troops of 115 Task Force Battalion deployed at Lassa in Borno State received a distress call from vigilantes at Maikadiri village on movement of suspected Boko Haram terrorists along Road Maikadiri – Shuwari enroute Michika.

    “The troops immediately organized blocking positions and swooped on the terrorists which led to an exchange of fire. The terrorists attempted to escape but were intercepted and suppressed with heavy volume of fire.

    “Consequently, the troops with reinforcement from 143 Battalion Gulak engaged the terrorists on Two Front Coordinated Attacks.

    “The BHTs were completely routed by the troops, neutralizing many of them, while others fled in disarray due to superior firepower.

    “As a result, they hastily evacuated most of their corpses under the cover of darkness. The entire area has been dominated by own troops and the situation is completely under control. Items captured from the terrorists include One Ford vehicle, two Toyota Starlet vehicles loaded with foodstuffs, one motorcycle and one tyre inflating machine.

    “Further exploitation is to be conducted this morning. Calm has since returned to the city and inhabitants of the town are hereby enjoined to report the presence of strange faces in their localities and go about their normal businesses. “

  • Babachir, others urge peace as anxiety over Adamawa gov’ship election mounts

    Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, and some other elders of Adamawa State have advised Governor Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow to accept in good faith the supremacy of the candidate of opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) over him in the March 9 governorship election and avoid actions that could plunge the state in crisis.

    There is growing anxiety in Adamawa State following apparent resolve of All Progressives Congress (APC) party and government in the state to have the March 9 election annulled against the suspicion in the PDP family and its supporters that the party’s candidate, Umaru Fintiri, was deprived of immediate victory in the first place when the election was declared inconclusive.

    The PDP which had earlier accused the APC of planning to get the court to stop the scheduled March 23 supplementary governorship election and possibly annul the March 9 main election, openly fingered the APC government on Thursday when the state high court granted an injunction stopping INEC from conducting the supplementary election.

    Babachir Lawal and the other elders who made their appeals for peace on separate occasions, urged Bindow to relax his apparent determination to stick to power and save the state of looming crisis.

    “The only honourable thing to do is for my party’s candidate to concede and give peace a chance,” Babachir said, adding, “the next election is only four years away. Bindow can go back to the drawing board and launch himself back. Therefore, let’s not allow elections to cause trouble between brothers.”

    His and the appeal by others followed a new revelation that the number of registered voters in polling units where supplementary election was planned is not 40,948 as INEC first announced but 34,401 as the same INEC corrected in a reply on Friday to a request for figures from the PDP.

    Read Also: 2019: Voters will go for merit, not parties – Babachir

    Abdullahi Prembe, the PDP scribe, said the governorship election issue was being prolonged unnecessarily. “We have gleaned from INEC records that 34,101 is actually the number of registered voters in the affected polling units, as declared by the state returning officer,” Prembe said,

    A former governor of the state and chieftain of the PDP, Boni Haruna, who had much earlier questioned the rationale for declaring the March 9 governorship election inconclusive, had contended that PDP’s margin of lead in the election, which was 32,467, was higher than 31,027; being the number of PVCs collected in the polling units where election was cancelled.

    Against criticism of the PDP over the suit by the candidate of the MRDD, Rev Eric Theman, that led to the injunction against the scheduled supplementary election, the APC secretary, Wafarninyi Theman, said the MRDD candidate had the right to question the omission of his party logo from the ballot paper because the omission by INEC deprived him of the right to be voted for.

    The PDP had polled 367,471 votes in the March 9 governorship election against APC’s 334,995 to leave a lead margin of 32,467, which INEC said was lower than the number of registered voters in polling units where voting was cancelled, and for which reason INEC declared the election inconclusive.

     

  • Court injunction endangers Adamawa supplementary gov’ship election

    In Adamawa State, preparation for the March 23 supplementary governorship election is beclouded by a court injunction restraining INEC from conducting it.

    To start with, both the APC and PDP had issues with either the conduct of the main election or the status of its outcome.

    The PDP was faulting INEC for asserting that the margin of lead by its candidate, Umaru Fintiri, was less than number of registered voters where voting was cancelled. It was asking INEC to instead declare its candidate winner of that election because his margin of  lead was higher than number  of voters  with PVCs in the polling units where voting was cancelled.

    The party was nonetheless willing to participate in the supplementary election on INECs insistence in conducting it, moreso as it felt sure it would win the rerun to consolidate its lead in the main election.

    The APC was on the other hand reluctant, complaining of irregularities in the conduct of the main election and asking that voting in more units during the main election be cancelled because of such irregularities.

    While the parties were at such varying levels of acceptance of the main election and the proposed rerun, a court verdict came to light Thursday morning, asking INEC to pause activities leading to its conduct of the rerun.

    A Yola high Court judge, Justice Abdul-Aziz Waziri, had given the ruling in a suit filed by the governorship candidate of the Movement for Restoration and Defence of Democracy (MRDD), Rev Eric Theman. The judge said, “The defendant herein, INEC, is restrained … from proceeding with the supplementary election in respect of Adamawa State governorship pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”

    The judge then adjourned the case to March 21, two days to the scheduled rerun, for hearing of motion for the interlocutory injunction.

    Read Also: Adamawa Assembly results: APC, PDP get 11 seats each

    So, as the other states where supplementary governorship election has been scheduled are preparing for it, in Adamawa the focus right now is the court injunction.

    The APC welcomes the injunction. The secretary of the party, Hon Wafarninyi Theman, told The Nation in an interview: “From what I have seen, the complainant has a genuine case, except INEC comes out to tell us that this party was not cleared for the election. But it’s a legitimate party and it had a legitimate candidate to contest in the election. And if they didn’t find the logo of their party on the ballot paper, it means they were deprived of the chance to be be voted for. So, I think INEC should have admitted in the first place that they made a mistake. However, we are waiting for the response of INEC.”

    The PDP thinks very differently. The state chairman of the PDP, Bar Tahir Shehu who spoke on the matter, said the injunction was in the first place a nonstarter and would be overturned.

    Shehu said, “We do know that by the provisions of the Electoral Act, no court of law can stop the process of election. So the purported order is invalid. INEC is not bound to comply with it… The law says no court can stop either primary, general or supplementary election. Notwithstanding, we are taking steps to get that order set aside.”

    So, the engagement by both the APC and PDP in Adamawa State now is not how to win maximum votes in the supplementary election but how it might be scuttled or allowed to hold.

     

  • INEC erred declaring Adamawa governorship election inconclusive – PDP

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has said that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) erred in declaring the governorship election in Adamawa State inconclusive because the margin of lead was lower than the number of registered voters in places where voting was cancelled.

    The state chapter of the party contended at a press briefing in Yola on Tuesday that INEC should have reckoned not with all the registered voters but only the number of those who collected their permanent voter cards (PVCs) in the indicated units, which it said was smaller than the margin of lead in the election.

    The PDP had polled 367,472 votes; as against the next leading party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), which received 334,995 votes after results from the state’s 21 LGAs had been collated by Monday morning; but INEC declared the election inconclusive on the argument that the margin of lead by the PDP, which was 32,467 votes, was lower than the number of registered voters, 40,948 in 44 polling units (PUs) where elections either did not hold or were cancelled.

    The PDP however said, in the text of briefing read to newsmen by a former governor of the state under the party, Boni Haruna, that INEC’s argument was untenable.

    Read Also: Declare results, Rivers monarchs urge INEC

    The PDP said, “We’ve been able to establish that the number of PVCs collected by voters in the 44 PUs is 31,027. So, 31,027 are the only eligible voters in those units. If there is going to be a rerun, the 31,027 people who collected their PVCs are less than PDP’s margin of win. How then would the rerun affect the leading position of the PDP? So, there was no basis in declaring the Adamawa State governorship election inconclusive.”

    The party said it rejected declaration of the election as inconclusive and demanded that INEC rescind its decision and declare the PDP candidate, Rt Hon Umaru Fintiri, as the winner.

    It asked that if INEC would insist on a rerun, it should provide the number of PVCs collected in each of the 44 PUs and number of voters accredited in the units for the March 9 governorship election; and should ensure that all electoral materials for the rerun are distributed in a transparent manner.

    In its own reaction to the outcome of the governorship election in Adamawa State, the APC had on Monday alleged widespread irregularities and called for a redress.

    “As a party, we reject the results of the governorship election in Adamawa State in its totality and we call for the cancellation of all … places where card readers were not used, and where there was over-voting,” the party said at a briefing in Yola.

     

  • PDP’s Fintiri sets to win in Adamawa with 1 LGA to go

    With result pending from just one remaining local government area and the Peoples Democratic Party leading with over 30,000 votes, the party looks set to win the governorship election in Adamawa State.
    Results collated from 20 LGAs by just before 9 pm on Sunday when the process was suspended because result from Toungo LGA was yet to arrive the governorship collation centre in Yola, showed that the PDP candidate, Umaru Fintiri, had amassed a total of 361,539 votes while the APC candidate, Mohammed Bindow had polled 328, 433, a difference of 33,106 votes.
    The votes in the 20 LGAs are:
    1.   Shelleng APC 15,880, PDP 11,135
    2.   Yola South APC 21,941; PDP 17,432
    3.   Mayo-Belwa APC 14198; PDP 19,897
    4.   Girei APC 14,976; PDP 14,115
    5.   Mubi North APC 31,794; PDP 16,667
    6.   Yola North APC 20,979; PDP 24,383
    7.   Song APC 17,439; PDP 24,504
    8.   Michika 13,324; PDP 24,504
    9.   Mubi South APC 19,825; PDP 10,420
    10. Fufore APC 21,669; PDP 17,226; ADC 9,560
    11. Numan APC 11,592; PDP 18,826
    12. Guyuk APC 12,494; PDP 18,305
    13. Lumurde APC 10,102; PDP 18,783
    14. Maiha APC 14,939; PDP 8,745; ADC 5,959
    15. Ganye APC 19,063; PDP 17,809
    16. Jada APC 18,006; PDP 20,076
    17. Demsa APC 10,342; PDP 22,037
    18. Hong 21,358; PDP 25,878
    19. Gombi APC 9,347; PDP 12,968
    20. Madagali APC 9,365; PDP 17,529
    Although the number of accredited voters in Toungo could not be ascertained by press time, the LGA is a small one which result was not expected to make a radical difference from what had already been established from the known LGAs.

     Onimisi Alao, Yola
    With result pending from just one remaining local government area and the Peoples Democratic Party leading with over 30,000 votes, the party looks set to win the governorship election in Adamawa State.
    Results collated from 20 LGAs by just before 9 pm on Sunday when the process was suspended because result from Toungo LGA was yet to arrive the governorship collation centre in Yola, showed that the PDP candidate, Umaru Fintiri, had amassed a total of 361,539 votes while the APC candidate, Mohammed Bindow had polled 328, 433, a difference of 33,106 votes.
    The votes in the 20 LGAs are:
    1.   Shelleng APC 15,880, PDP 11,135
    2.   Yola South APC 21,941; PDP 17,432
    3.   Mayo-Belwa APC 14198; PDP 19,897
    4.   Girei APC 14,976; PDP 14,115
    5.   Mubi North APC 31,794; PDP 16,667
    6.   Yola North APC 20,979; PDP 24,383
    7.   Song APC 17,439; PDP 24,504
    8.   Michika 13,324; PDP 24,504
    9.   Mubi South APC 19,825; PDP 10,420
    10. Fufore APC 21,669; PDP 17,226; ADC 9,560
    11. Numan APC 11,592; PDP 18,826
    12. Guyuk APC 12,494; PDP 18,305
    13. Lumurde APC 10,102; PDP 18,783
    14. Maiha APC 14,939; PDP 8,745; ADC 5,959
    15. Ganye APC 19,063; PDP 17,809
    16. Jada APC 18,006; PDP 20,076
    17. Demsa APC 10,342; PDP 22,037
    18. Hong 21,358; PDP 25,878
    19. Gombi APC 9,347; PDP 12,968
    20. Madagali APC 9,365; PDP 17,529
    Although the number of accredited voters in Toungo could not be ascertained by press time, the LGA is a small one which result was not expected to make a radical difference from what had already been established from the known LGAs.

  • PDP’s Fintiri sets to win Adamawa with one LGA to go

    With result pending from just one remaining local government area and the Peoples Democratic Party leading with over 30,000 votes, the party looks set to win the governorship election in Adamawa State.
    Results collated from 20 LGAs by just before 9 pm on Sunday when the process was suspended because result from Toungo LGA was yet to arrive the governorship collation centre in Yola, showed that the PDP candidate, Umaru Fintiri, had amassed a total of 361,539 votes while the APC candidate, Mohammed Bindow had polled 328, 433, a difference of 33,106 votes.
    The votes in the 20 LGAs are:
    1.   Shelleng APC 15,880, PDP 11,135
    2.   Yola South APC 21,941; PDP 17,432
    3.   Mayo-Belwa APC 14198; PDP 19,897
    4.   Girei APC 14,976; PDP 14,115
    5.   Mubi North APC 31,794; PDP 16,667
    6.   Yola North APC 20,979; PDP 24,383
    7.   Song APC 17,439; PDP 24,504
    8.   Michika 13,324; PDP 24,504
    9.   Mubi South APC 19,825; PDP 10,420
    10. Fufore APC 21,669; PDP 17,226; ADC 9,560
    11. Numan APC 11,592; PDP 18,826
    12. Guyuk APC 12,494; PDP 18,305
    13. Lumurde APC 10,102; PDP 18,783
    14. Maiha APC 14,939; PDP 8,745; ADC 5,959
    15. Ganye APC 19,063; PDP 17,809
    16. Jada APC 18,006; PDP 20,076
    17. Demsa APC 10,342; PDP 22,037
    18. Hong 21,358; PDP 25,878
    19. Gombi APC 9,347; PDP 12,968
    20. Madagali APC 9,365; PDP 17,529
    Although the number of accredited voters in Toungo could not be ascertained by press time, the LGA is a small one which result was not expected to make a radical difference from what had already been established from the known LGAs.

  • Suicide bomber dies trying to kill Adamawa residents

    The Police in Adamawa State confirmed Sunday evening that a female suicide bomber trying to bomb people in a crowd in Shuwa, Adamawa State succeeded only in killing herself.

    The Police Public Relations Officer, Othman Abubakar, who confirmed the development to The Nation correspondent, said a second suicide bomber who similarly attempted to detonate a bomb strapped on her, was stopped from doing so by security agents.

    “While the first one killed herself as she sought to kill others, the second one was saved from herself and her targets,” Othman said.

    Read also: Police killed supporter, not observer in my residence, says Ayogu Eze

    Shuwa is in Madagali Local Government Area (LGA), a place that has in recent weeks and months been haunted frequently by the Boko Haram insurgents.

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had announced a couple of months to the ongoing elections, that following security advice, elections would take place in the Madagali LGA in only three towns, which happens to include Shuwa.

  • PDP wins in Adamawa Govt House

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday defeated Governor Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow at the 11 voting points in the three polling units around the Government House in Adamawa State.

    The incumbent Governor Bindow is seeking re-election on the platform of his party, the All Progressives Party, APC.

    Results from nine of the 11 polling units obtained as at filing this report, showed that the PDP polled a total of 441 votes against 260 votes of the APC and 203 scored by the African Democratic Party (ADC).

    The presiding officer for Unit 010 of the New Government House polling units would not read out the results of the two voting points of the unit, but the figures of the unit gleaned by our correspondent showed superior figures for the PDP.

    The governorship candidate of the PDP, Hon Umaru Fintiri, is a former speaker and later acting governor of the state, while ADC’s governorship candidate is Abdul-Azizi Nyako, a serving senator and son of a former governor, Murtala Nyako.

    Bindow voted in Mubi while Fintiri voted in Madagali,  both in the northern  senatorial zone of the state. Abdula-Aziz voted at a unit opposite the deputy governor’s office in Jimeta, Yola North local government area.

    Adamawa speaker slams PDP in own polling unit

    Alhaji Kabiru Mijinyawa, Speaker, Adamawa State House of Assembly yesterday defeated both PDP and ADC candidates with large votes in unit 006, Wuro-Hausa, Adarawo Ward in Yola South.

    NAN correspondent, who monitored the counting, reports that Mijinya, candidate of APC garnered 466 votes to beat candidate of PDP, Adamu Baba who polled 126.  Ahmed Mahmoud of ADC got 84 votes.

    The APC also won in the governorship category, with incumbent Gov. Mohammed Jibrilla Bindow polling 410 votes to defeat PDP’s Ahmadu Fintiri and Sen. Abdulazeez Nyako of ADC who got 134 and 136 votes.

    NAN also reports that the APC governorship candidate won the polling unit 006 of Dr Mahmoud Halilu, younger brother to Aisha Buhari, wife of the president.

    While APC got 179, the PDP polled 112 and ADC got 79 votes. The polling unit is in Korea, Mbamoi, Ward in Yola South Local Government Area.

  • APC candidate’s death: INEC postpones assembly election in Adamawa

    The  Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)  has postponed the House of Assembly election for the Nasarawa/Binyeri State Constituency of Adamawa State.

    Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Mr Kashim Gaidam, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yola that the postponement became necessary following the death of a member of the assembly who was the candidate of the All Progressives Congress in the election.

    The candidate,  Mr Adamu Kwanate,  until his death on Wednesday,  was the member representing the constituency.

    It was gathered that the late Kwanate collapsed while campaigning for his re-election, and died later in a hospital in Yola.

    Read also: Sanwo-Olu is candidate to beat in Lagos

    Gaidam said that the postponement would allow the APC and people of the constituency to find a replacement.

    “We received a letter from the party and the House of Assembly regarding the death of the candidate and we have replied, giving them one week to find a replacement.

    “We will communicate their replacement to the headquarters to fix a new date for the election,” Gaidam said.

  • Haruna commends Nigerian Army’s response to Boko Haram attacks in Michik

    Former Governor of Adamawa State, Boni Haruna has hailed the effort of the Nigerian Army as well other security agencies over their prompt and gallant response to Boko Haram attacks in his community, Michika.
    Members of the Boko Haram insurgents on Monday attacked Michika town, the headquarters of  Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State barely few days to the supplementary election, but the Nigerian Army in a gallant response quelled the uprising by neutralizing the terrorists who came in their numbers
    Mr Haruna in a statement signed personally by him said;
    “It is quite worrisome for Michika to once again experience such attack when the people had almost settled to rebuild their lives after the 2014 invasion  during which  the area and indeed the entire Northern part of the state was overran by the insurgents.
    “I take this opportunity to condole with the people, particularly the families of those who lost their beloved ones most of whom were hit by stray bullets in the course of running for their dear lives. I pray for the quick recovery of the injured ones and for the restoration of the losses that have been incurred.
    “In the midst of this tragic event and the pains and agonies that come with it, I urge all our people to remain calm and steadfast. This sad moment shall also pass as we look into the future with hope and determination.” he added.
    Full Statement
    I wish to most profoundly commend the Nigerian army and other security agencies for the their prompt and gallant response to the attack in Michika, my community yesterday by suspected  Boko Haram insurgents.
    It would be recalled that Michika came under intense attack yesterday night 18th, March, 2019 which lasted  for hours during which the Nigerian army gallantly and professionally  engaged the insurgents in a deadly gun battle, for which we are most grateful.
    It is quite worrisome for Michika to once again experience such attack when the people had almost settled to rebuild their lives after the 2014 invasion  during which  the area and indeed the entire Northern part of the state was overran by the insurgents.
    I take this opportunity to condole with the people, particularly the families of those who lost their beloved ones most of whom were hit by stray bullets in the course of running for their dear lives. I pray for the quick recovery of the injured ones and for the restoration of the losses that have been incurred.
    In the midst of this tragic event and the pains and agonies that come with it, I urge all our people to remain calm and steadfast. This sad moment shall  also pass as we look into the future with hope and determination.
    In  keeping with the spirit of steadfastness,  we must not lose sight of our civic duties and responsibilities as we keep a date  with the March 23rd, 2019 forthcoming  supplementary election in  4 or 6 Polling Units in  Michika and other 13 Local Government Areas across the state.
    We must be part of making history  towards ushering in a purposeful and focused leadership that will fast track the full return to nomalcy of life for our people through the rebuilding of our destroyed houses, schools and infrastructure. It is doable. Yes! it is with the correct leadership.