The Zamfara State Government has accused the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, of using the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) to intimidate opposition figures in the state.
The allegation followed the reported abduction of Saleem Abubakar, a technical assistant in the Office of the Governor Dauda Lawal.
Abubakar was said to have been in Abuja under circumstances the state government described as illegal.
In a statement issued Wednesday evening by the spokesperson to the Governor, Sulaiman Idris and made available to journalists in Kaduna, the government alleged that Abubakar was abducted by operatives believed to be a “Special Forces unit operating from the Office of the National Security Adviser.”
The statement said the operatives acted without an arrest warrant, raising questions about the legal basis for the operation and the authority under which it was carried out.
The state government further alleged that Abubakar was taken to an unknown location and later moved between different security facilities, a development it said suggested an attempt to conceal his whereabouts.
“The most unfortunate and worrying part of the abduction of Saleem Abubakar is that it was syndicated through the office of the NSA by the State Minister for Defence, Bello Matawalle,” the statement said.
It warned that “the incident set a dangerous precedent and threatened the neutrality of Nigeria’s security institutions,” stressing that political disagreements must not be resolved through intimidation.
“We cannot afford to fold our arms and watch the highest security office of the country being used as a tool of political persecution,” the statement said.
The statement called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene and ensure that the Office of the NSA operated strictly within constitutional limits, warning that such actions were detrimental to Nigeria’s reputation
It maintained that if there were allegations against Abubakar, he should be charged to court rather than subjected to what it described as “an illegal abduction.
The statement said the state government was closely monitoring the matter and would pursue it to its logical conclusion to ensure justice.
Zamfara condemns arrest of governor’s aide, accuses Matawalle of using NSA office to intimidate opponents
