Shettima accuses opposition of destroying property in Borno

Category: News Published on Thursday, 28 February 2013 00:42 Written by Hamza Idris, Maiduguri

Governor Kashim Shettima yesterday said opposition politicians in the state are those destroying public property not Boko Haram members.

The governor stated this in Konduga where he supervised a Pivot Irrigation Scheme which may be commissioned by President Jonathan soon.

“I can tell you without fear of contradiction that most of the destruction of public property is the handiwork of some opposition politicians who do not want us to succeed. Believe you me, Boko Haram will not condescend to doing things like this. But I know politicians can do it,” Shettima said.

There are insinuations that some politicians are working assiduously to create artificial insecurity in order to discourage the president from visiting Borno.

Shettima therefore directed that 20 soldiers, 20 policemen and 30 vigilante members be posted to keep watch at the Konduga irrigation project.

“We as a government will not fold our hands, but will provide adequate security to all government projects across the state,” Shettima said.

But Alhaji Baba Basharu, chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party in Borno State last night said Governor Shettima was “beating around the bush,” saying that ANPP “has failed in providing services for the electorate and now that the president is planning to visit Borno, they are running helter skelter looking for the projects that they will show the president.”

The Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) act chairman in the state Ibrahim El-Zubair said “the governor knows that the CPC is a party of peace and will not relegate itself to destruction of property in order to score chief political goal.”