It’s Fake News – Gov Bello
•••As Defence Headquarters Denies Military Involvement
By Musa Tanimu Nasidi
In a complex weave of accusations and denials,Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello has debunked alleged assassination attempt on his life by Gunmen in military uniform along Lokoja -Abuja Road on Sunday.
Addressing newsmen in the evening of Sunday in Abuja,, Bello explained the incident on Lokoja-Abuja Highway as a mere altercation between his security details and some military personnel at a check point.
But his Information Commissioner, Mr Kingsley Fanwo, in a statement, alleged assassination attempt on the governor’s life along the Lokoja-Abuja Road around 4.20.p.m. of Sunday.
Fanwo had claimed that the assassins were in military uniforms during the attack, which was repelled by security men attached to the governor.
A contrary statement in Lokoja by Bello’s Media Aide, Onogwu Mohammed, said: “What happened along the Lokoja-Abuja road was a minor disagreement between the security details attached to him and some military personnel providing security on the road.
In an interview granted to newsmen a few moments ago at his residence in Abuja, Bello stated that there was no attempt whatsoever on his life.
He clarified that while there was a minor fracas between men of the Nigerian Police Force attached to his convoy and those of a military unit manning the highways, it was in the course of both units performing their lawful security duties.
In reaction to the alleged attack on governor Bello by gunmen in military uniform on Sunday,the Nigerian Defense Headquarters in a press statement signed by Brig. Gen. Tukur Gusau, Director, Defence Information, Defence Headquarters, argued that these assailants were merely criminals masquerading as military personnel.
Brigadier Tukur, who reacted to the earlier statement issued by the Kogi state commissioner for information, Mr Kinsley Fawon, further argued that Accusations and Clarifications
Brig. Gen.Gusau, while dismissing the claims of military involvement, reaffirmed that the attackers were impostors in counterfeit military attire and called upon law enforcement agencies to launch a thorough investigation and ensure the perpetrators face the full extent of the law.
