Yuguda, Bala accuse each other of masterminding stoning of GEJ

ABUJA — STRONG indications emerged that the cold war between a political godfather and his son has reared its head again, following accusations and counter accusations between Governor Isa Yuguda of Bauchi State and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Senator Bala Mohammed. Their disagreement followed the governor’s claim that the minister hired thugs that stoned the president’s convoy in Bauchi last Thursday.

However, responding to the accusation yesterday, Senator Mohammed described Yuguda as , ‘’not only a fifth columnist but a mole in the Peoples Democratic Party, who claims to be a member of the party in the afternoon, but works for the opposition party, the All Progressives Congress, APC at night.’’
In a statement signed by Senator Mohammed’s Special Assistant, Media, Nosike Oguenyi, he said, “The attention of Senator Bala Mohammed has been drawn to an allegation by the Governor of Bauchi State, Mallam Isa Yuguda that he was the sponsor of the thugs that attacked the presidential campaign team of His Excellency, President Goodluck Jonathan in Bauchi on Thursday 22nd January, 2015.

“The question that the Governor must answer quickly without equivocation is: why did the thugs not stone him (Yuguda) whilst he was addressing the same rally, on the same podium and on the same day? Yuguda should also tell the world why he has suddenly turned into an APC spokesman, by exonerating the opposition party of culpability in the attack on the PDP presidential campaign team in Bauchi.
Governor Yuguda, however, insisted last night that Senator Mohammed was the one who imported the thugs as he said that the man hired by the minister to secure the services of the hoodlums and 70 of the thugs had been arrested. He said: “The Minister is a bigger APC mole, who should be disciplined by the President for trying to embarrass him and his office for selfish reasons.

“Contrary to his claim that the stoning was done by APC thugs, all the boys so far arrested by the police have turned to be Bala’s boys. So, who is an APC mole then?” the governor asked.
“Many Nigerians still remember recent media reports that Yuguda is the real godfather and sponsor of the APC gubernatorial candidate in Bauchi State and that he has not been campaigning for President Jonathan’s re-election in the state. Again, history is there to expose the Governor as an unabashed 5th columnist in the PDP.

“It would be recalled that the first attack Senator Bala Mohammed received for wholeheartedly supporting Dr. Goodluck Jonathan (then Vice President) was in 2010. The same Yuguda, in 2010, did everything humanly possible to recall and politically annihilate Bala Mohammed from the National Assembly as the Senator representing Bauchi South Senatorial District.

“Bala’s only sin was that he mobilized fellow lawmakers to invoke the famous ‘Doctrine of Necessity’ to confer powers on the then Vice President Jonathan to act as President while former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was away in Saudi Arabia receiving medical attention.

“The second attack of the FCT Minister by Yuguda came later again in 2010, when he deployed enormous energies into creating all manner of obstacles to block Senator Bala Mohammed’s return and re-registration as a member of the PDP in his native Alkaleri LGA of Bauchi State.

Again, that attempt was futile as it failed disastrously for Yuguda. Since then, Senator Bala Mohammed has become a force to reckon with at the highest echelon of the PDP.

“Senator Mohammed has consistently repeated that politics is not a do or die affair, hence he sacrificed his gubernatorial bid to allow peace to reign in Bauchi State. He is also sharply aware that this is the time for everyone to focus on issues that would promote rancour-free campaign and elections to ensure victory for the PDP. It is on these bases that it would be ridiculous to suggest that Senator Bala would hire thugs to attack the PDP and discredit the Governor in the state – more so, because he (the Minister) is not contesting any position with the Governor. In fact, anyone who believes his wild allegation would believe anything! By Yuguda’s latest embarrassing conduct, he has successfully exposed his chameleonic character as an APC mole in the PDP.’’

Vanguard, January 27, 2015

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