Crisis Rocks Arewa Group, Leader Suspended

The Northern Youth Council of Nigeria’s situation took a turn for the worse on Tuesday, when its National President, Isah Abubakar, was suspended.

The NYCN’s Executive Council met on Tuesday to distance the organization from its President, Isa Abubakar, who called for the arrest of Alhaji Liman Isah Kantigi, a PDP governorship candidate in Niger State, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on suspected financial indictments.

The group also announced Abubakar’s dismissal from his leadership post pending the outcome of a probe into his role in drawing a political northern group into Niger state politics.

The NYCN Director General, Media and Publicity, Mock Kure, while addressing a press conference at the Arewa House, Kaduna on Tuesday, noted that based on the decision of the Executive Committee of the NYCN, the senior official of the council would take over the position of the National President till further notice.

The National President of the group, had at a media briefing on Monday, said Alhaji Kantigi was charged alongside three other defendants in Charge Number FHC/ABJ/CR/100/2018 at the Federal High Court for offences relating to Money Laundering and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering at the Abuja Judicial Division of the Federal High Court on the 25th Day of June 2018.

He had said Kantigi deserved to be in prison rather than running for public office to serve as deterrent to other corrupt elements in country.

But the spokesman of the NYCN maintained that the President of the Northern group took a unitarily and personal decision over Kantigi.

Kantigi who is from Niger State, served as one time Chairman of Edati Local Government Council and Association of Local Government of Nigeria’s Chairman in the State.

While dissociating the group from Abubakar’s decision, Kure who spoke on behalf of the group, said, “We have been reliably informed that our president, Comrade Isah Abubakar addressed a Press conference urging the EFCC to arrest Hon Isa Liman Kantigi, over what he described as indictment by both High and Appeal courts.

“It is unfortunate that a person of Isah Abubakar’s standing would allow himself to be dragged into the murky water of Niger politics, and be misled to call for the arrest of a law abiding citizen who has contributed immensely to the development of his state and Northern Nigeria.

“To this end, the National Executive of Council met and resolved that the President, Dr Isah Abubakar be suspended forthwith from the activities of the Council pending the conclusion of investigative Committee,

“The most Senior Executive has therefore been mandated to lead the Council, going forward.

“This organization is a non-partisan organization and his recent actions of deliberate witch-hunting without verifying the veracity of the facts portrays him to have betrayed the objectives of this august body.”