Birnin Kebbi was thrown into chaos on Sunday evening when thugs loyal to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) attacked the convoy of former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), near his private residence in the GRA NITEL area of the state capital.
The incident, which occurred at about 5:20 pm shortly after Malami returned from condolence visits to the Emir of Gwandu and the family of late Islamic cleric Imam Tukur Kola, left several people injured and vehicles badly damaged. Witnesses said the attackers pelted the convoy with stones and dangerous objects, while police personnel stood by without intervening — an act widely interpreted as complicity by state actors.
This brazen assault highlights a disturbing pattern of APC’s do-or-die politics, where governance has been abandoned at the altar of raw power struggles, even as over 133 million Nigerians languish in multidimensional poverty according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Rising insecurity, inflation, and hunger continue to ravage the population, yet ruling party actors deploy state machinery and thugs to silence opposition voices instead of delivering governance.
Timeline Of Political Violence In 2025
The attack on Malami fits into a larger pattern of orchestrated violence and impunity that has scarred Nigeria throughout 2025:
- 13 Jan (Lagos): Speaker Mudashiru Obasa was impeached in a bitter Assembly tussle. Security forces, including DSS operatives, took over the State Assembly in Alausa, sealing off entrances and intimidating lawmakers loyal to Obasa.
- 16 Jan (Edo, Benin City): APC operatives violently took over the PDP State Secretariat on Airport Road, sparking outrage and a court case.
- 18 Feb (Lagos): Security operatives again flooded the State Assembly during the speakership conflict, prompting accusations that APC was using state actors to tip internal battles.
- Feb (Osun: Irewole, Ikire, Ilesa): Clashes over local government resumption turned deadly. The reinstated Irewole chairman, Remi Abass, and others were killed in bloody confrontations.
- 18 Mar (Rivers): In a dramatic move, President Tinubu declared a six-month state of emergency, suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, and the entire State Assembly. A sole administrator was imposed, effectively silencing Rivers people under the guise of order.
- 4 Apr (Abuja): Former APC aspirant Ibraheem Bolarinwa Oyekunle narrowly survived an assassination attempt on Airport Road.
- 15 Aug (Abuja): APC chieftain Dr. Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi was targeted after Jumu’at prayers in what many described as a sponsored hit.
- 27 Aug (Ekiti, Ikere): Gunmen opened fire during an opposition campaign event for Engr. Kayode Ojo. His supporters accused agents loyal to the sitting APC governor of orchestrating the shootings.
- 30 Aug (Kaduna, Mogadishu Layout): Hoodlums stormed an ADC coalition meeting led by ex-Governor Nasir El-Rufai, leaving scores wounded and vehicles destroyed.
- 31 Aug (Kebbi, Kamba – Dandi LGA): ADC leaders accused police officers of vandalizing their local headquarters.
Now, less than 24 hours later, Kebbi is again in the spotlight with Malami himself falling victim to APC-sponsored thuggery.
APC’s Dangerous Trajectory
International observers are also taking note. Recently, a court in Canada tagged the APC as a terrorist organization, a verdict that the party is furiously contesting. Yet evidence from Nigeria’s political landscape — from thuggery to assassinations and use of security forces against opponents — continues to point dangerously in that direction.
For Kebbi State, the government’s fear should not be Malami himself, but rather the consequences of its own actions and the millions of citizens left in abject poverty and insecurity. The people see a ruling party that has traded governance for vendetta, preferring to deploy thugs and state actors against rivals instead of addressing the hunger, banditry, and despair suffocating the North.
A Warning Sign
The assault on Malami underscores a larger truth: Nigeria is playing with fire. If political power continues to be pursued through bloodshed and intimidation, the country risks sliding into anarchy.
As one commentator put it only days ago: Will APC burn down the country to rule over the ashes?
With every attack, that grim question looks less like rhetoric and more like prophecy.