Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State says the merchants of fake news have failed.
He said this while reacting to reports that he was attacked at an All Progressives Congress (APC) rally in Gashua area of the state on Saturday.
In a statement, which Mamman Mohammed, the Director-General, Press and Media Affairs at Yobe Government House, Buni said he was welcomed to the rally.
“We read with dismay Media reports making rounds that some party stalwarts were stoned at a rally in Gashua, Yobe state. We have found it necessary to respond to the false, alarming and precarious report to avoid misleading the general public.
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“The rally witnessed a very large crowd ever seen in the political history of Gashua Town. The tumultuous crowd were out to welcome the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, Governor Buni and members of the Campaign Council.
“Governor Buni walked freely through the crowd acknowledging cheers from the supporters as he walked to the podium. When it became obvious the the podium was threatened to collapse with an overwhelming crowd, the Director General of the APC Campaign Council, Sen. Muhammad Hassan, stopped all speeches after the Senate President.
“He therefore ordered everyone to get down from the podium for safety before it collapses. The rally continued with dances and until all the dignitaries left, there was no breach of security and no one was attacked.
“It was gathered that much later when the Governor and members of the Campaign Council had departed Gashua, two supporting groups were engaged in disagreements with threats to each other but never degenerated to attack.
“The publishers of the fake news only engaged in a futile attempt to create an impression of a bad relationship between the people of Gashua and the APC government in Yobe state.”
Similarly, the Yobe State APC Campaign Council dismissed reports of Buni being stoned.
Addressing a press conference in Damaturum the state capital on Sunday, Director General of the Campaign Council Senator Muhammad Hassan (Dambu) said, “The publishers of the fake news only engaged in a futile attempt to create an impression of a bad relationship between the people of Gashua and the APC government in Yobe state”
“The rally continued with dances and until all the dignitaries left, there was no breach of security and no one was attacked.”
He described the opposition parties in the state as a purveyor of fake news capable of causing disaffection among the Yobe people.