The Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has been accused of allegedly colluding with bandits to orchestrate the abduction of 300 students from Government Secondary School, Kankara, in Katsina State during his tenure as Zamfara State Governor.
In an interview with an online TV station, Special Assistant to Governor Dauda Lawal on Media and Communications, Mustafa Jafaru Kaura, alleged that Matawalle played a central role in the kidnapping.
The Kankara abduction took place on December 11, 2020, when over 300 students were kidnapped from the Government Science Secondary School in Kankara, Katsina State
The boys were later confirmed released on December 18, 2020.
Kaura, in the interview, claimed that the former governor collected N300m from then-Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, as ransom for the release of the abducted students but diverted most of the funds.
He said, “Matawalle collected N300m from his counterpart, the then Governor of Katsina State, Aminu Bello Masari, with the aim of facilitating the release of the 300 kidnapped students of GSS Kankara.
“However, at the end, he gave the bandits only N30m and took the remaining N270m for himself.”
In response, the Zamfara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress said it would take legal action against Kaura for what it called “baseless and unfounded” allegations against Matawalle, who is the party’s leader in the state.
In a statement to journalists on Wednesday, APC spokesperson Yusuf Idris, announced that the party had convened an emergency meeting and resolved to take Kaura to court.
Idris said, “The Zamfara State chapter of the APC under its chairman, Tukur Umar Danfulani today held an emergency SWC meeting and reviewed the provocation by Mustapha Jafaru Kaura against its leaders, who need to be called to order.
“The meeting condemned the lies peddled by the Zamfara State government against the APC leaders in the state, more especially against the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Mohammed Matawalle, on very sensitive issues which need to be investigated.”
“The callousness of Mustapha Jafaru Kaura, spokesman to Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal, characterised by open insults, character assassination, and direct abuse of APC Zamfara State chapter chieftains—particularly the state party leader and current Minister of State for Defence, former governor Bello Mohammed Matawalle, as well as the former governor now Senator representing Zamfara West, Hon. Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar—can no longer be tolerated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.”
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