BREAKING: After demanding Buhari’s resignation, DSS arrests Ganduje’s aide on his way from mosque

Men of  the Department of State Service (DSS), on Friday arrested an aide to Governor Abdullahi Ganduje hours after he criticised President Muhammadu Buhari’s handling of Nigeria’s security crisis, according to a Kano government official.

Sponsored Ads

Salihu Tanko-Yakasai was taken into custody shortly after his Twitter post condemning Friday’s abduction of Zamfara schoolgirls went viral online.

LIST OF APPLICATIONS FOR REGULARISATION OF AREA COUNCIL LAND DOCUMENTS NULLIFIED/CANCELLED BY THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF FCT

His arrest was not immediately disclosed, prompting friends to take to social media to raise concerns about his whereabouts on Saturday morning.

LIST OF APPLICATIONS FOR REGULARISATION OF AREA COUNCIL LAND DOCUMENTS NULLIFIED/CANCELLED BY THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF FCT

According to The Gazette, Tanko-Yakasai was arrested while returning from the mosque on Friday afternoon, adding that the governor was yet to be informed about the development.

“Alhamdulillah we just confirmed @dawisu is at DSS office,” a Kano government spokesman also said on Twitter Saturday morning, injecting immediate calm into initial apprehension palpable across the microblogging platform.

“@dawisu was arrested and taken to Abuja from kano. #FreeDawisu now!,” another friend said.

A spokesman for the police in Kano said the matter had not been reported. A spokesman for the SSS did not immediately return a request seeking comments on  Saturday morning.

Tanko-Yakasai, who has worked as Ganduje’s media handler since 2015, was suspended from office for several weeks last year after criticising Buhari over insecurity. Both Ganduje and Buhari are political allies of the ruling All Progressives Congress.

The DSS, a domestic intelligence outfit, has been notorious for cracking down on critics of Nigerian brutal regimes for decades. The outfit was infamous as a prime suspect in the arrest, disappearance and murder of critics under dictator Sani Abacha.

After staying mildly away from controversies following Nigeria’s return to civil rule in 1999, the SSS returned to its brutal ways under Mr. Buhari, conducting regular crackdowns on critics, including Yele Sowore, Obadiah Mailafia and several journalists and activists.

Details shortly…