Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has alleged threat to his life and those of his family members. He said the threat was as a result of his desir
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has alleged threat to his life and those of his family members. He said the threat was as a result of his desire to contest the 2019 presidential election. Atiku is among the 13 presidential aspirants on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party. The petition, titled “Petition Over Criminal Intimidation And Threat To My Life, That Of Members Of My Family, And Cyber Stalking Using Mobile Phone Number 08148228704.” A copy of the petition, dated September 7, 2018, was also sent to the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus.
In the petition, Atiku alleged that his wife and daughters have received separate text messages from the mobile line, asking him to back out of the race. He said the callers said that if he refused to drop his presidential ambition, his wife and daughters would be raped and killed. As a result of this, he begged the President to order the deployment of more policemen around him and his family. He said the unknown author of the threat text messages said his family was being watched closely. He also called on the President to order an urgent investigation into the matter.
The petition read in part, “I present my highest compliments to the president and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and have the honour to request your Excellency to kindly review/investigation an urgent consideration for extra protection for my family and I against some criminal intimidation and threat to my life, that of my family, and the cyberstalking against my family and I, using telephone mobile number +2348148228704. The author threatened that if I don’t withdraw from the contest, ‘we will kill, rape your wife and daughters’, whom they identified as Mariam who works at CBN and Fatima, the former commissioner in Adamawa State.’
“The author of the threat messages also said ‘we will blow your plane off the sky and we will poison you and your family. You are going to see what we will do with your family. We know where and where your children travel to.’ The author of the messages threatened that they will blow up all my property and those of my wife’s. They said ‘we control the aviation towers in Nigeria and South Africa. We are in government and Buhari will win again. Your party members will never select you and if they do, we will assassinat (sic) you. We will kill you by blowing up your plane.’
“In the separate text messages to my wife and daughter, they asked them to ask me to back down from the contest or they will be harmed.”
Atiku added; “from the foregoing, Mr. President can see that if adequate and urgent steps are not taken to identify and dealing with these threats, it could lead to serious breaches and may constitute a real danger to national security. Considering that this threats border on the right of my family and I to life as well as my freedom to aspire for and contest for the Presidency in Nigeria, I urge you to commence urgent investigation with a view to identifying the person (s) behind the threat, expose and prosecute the culprit (s) in accordance with the laws.
“I request that you ensure the continued protection of my rights to life, that of my family, my property and my rights and freedoms to associate and aspire to any political office as guaranteed under the 1999 Nigerian constitution (as amended).”
