10th March, 2015
Some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) thugs in Kano state on Monday held Vice-President Namadi Sambo hostage for almost 30 minutes to protest against neglect of “their services” by the party.
The incident happened at the old campus of Bayero University Kano (BUK) at the end of the vice-president’s official engagement.
A witness who narrated the event to TheCable said dozens of heavily-armed men beat Sambo’s security cordon and circled around him, chanting Bamayi! Bamayi!! Bamayi!!! (we are no longer with you) and Mungaji da aiki banza “we are tired of this job).
It took the intervention of Tambari Yabo, an assistant inspector-general of police, for the thugs to disarm themselves and settle for dialogue.
“The thugs complained bitterly that they were putting their lives on the line to keep the party alive in the state, yet they were not being paid. Instead, state leaders of the party were only making unfulfilled promises,” the witness said.
“The vice president was released after he directed the party to attend to their needs to avoid a repeat of such public embarrassment.”
The thugs subsequently joined the vice-president’s convoy, which headed to other parts of the city for other engagements.