#NigeriaElections2023: One allegedly dead, APC youth leader shot for ballot box snatching
…As Tinubu’s North-East coordinator loses polling unit to Atiku
Chima Azubuike
Gombe State Youth leader of the All Progressives Congress, Kawu Mohammed-Masu, was on Saturday shot in the leg with one other yet to be confirmed thug reportedly shot dead for trying to snatch ballot box and results from the just concluded presidential election at the Yahaya Umaru 010 polling unit in Gombe metropolis.
This Paper had exclusively reported that Mohammed-Masu, who is popularly known as Top-lero, masterminded the snatching of four boxes before soldiers retrieved two from him.
Investigation conducted by our correspondent on Sunday reveals that the attempted ballot box theft followed the announcement of results of the polling unit where the State Governor Muhammadu Yahaya, voted.
In the results, which were announced to the cheers of voters, the PDP presidential candidate Abubakar polled 215 to defeat the APC candidate Bola Tinubu, who secured 186 votes at the unit.
Yahaya is the North-East Coordinator of Tinubu/Shettima Campaign lost the same unit to Atiku Abubakar candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party.
The loss is said to have angered the youths in Gombe and triggered the move to render the result from polling useless said an eyewitness who pleaded anonymity, while recounting that the APC resorted to snatching the result and ballot box to prevent it from going to the collation centre.
Another source within the APC boys revealed that the incident occurred when officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission was counting House of Representatives ballot papers.
“The incident occurred on the road leading INEC office, along Bauchi road in the Gombe metropolis, he (the youth leader) was hanging on the Hilux van when he ordered his boys to snatch the box and other materials.
“When he noticed the reaction of the security personnel providing security for the INEC officials he quickly tried to jump down from the van that was how he was shot in the left leg. He sustained fracture in the second. He was quickly evacuated to the Federal Teaching Hospital in Gombe for treatment,” the source said.
At the hospital security personnel mostly soldiers were seen everywhere around the Accident and Emergency department of the hospital, while doctors tried to save the youth leader’s leg from being damaged permanently.
