Jigawa governor, deputy booed at Maulud celebration

The Governor of Jigawa State, Mohammed Badaru, and his Deputy, Umar Namadi, were on Saturday, booed by an irate crowd at the Gumel Local Government Area of the state.

The governor was in Gumel to celebrate the annual Maulud – marking the birth of Prophet Muhammad.

Earlier, the State’s Commissioner for Special Duties, Auwal Sankara, in a statement, said his principal will be in Gumel to attend the annual ‘Sallar Gani’ (Maulud celebration).

“The Executive Governor of Jigawa state Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar is expected to join the Emir of Gumel to celebrate Sallah Gani which will take place tomorrow (Saturday) at the Gumel Emirate.

“Sallah Gani is an age-old festival observed in Gumel emirate, every year during the Eid Maulud celebration, precisely on the 12th Day of Rabiul Awwal in the Islamic calendar, sons, and daughters of Gumel emirate origin, from all walks of life return home to take part in the prestigious festival, the official statement said.

The governor’s appearance at the event was the first public event he attended after he returned from a holiday abroad.

The governor has come under intense criticism for travelling abroad on holiday without showing empathy and visiting victims of flood disasters across the state.

Over a hundred people have died in the flood which destroyed farmlands, and houses and displaced thousands of people.

At the event in Gumel, the governor and his deputy were seen in a viral video being booed by the crowd.

The angry residents were seen shouting ‘Bamayi’ (we don’t want you) while the duo were standing waving to the crowd through the sunroof of a moving vehicle.

However, the governor was also greeted by many at the event while passing through the crowd to the emir’s palace where the event took place.

While the reason the governor was booed was not clear, many believed it was due to the governor’s nonchalance towards the victims of the widespread flood in the state.

Gumel council area is also believed to be the stronghold of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) and the hometown of its deputy governorship candidate, Babandi Ibrahim.

When contacted on Sunday, the governor’s spokesperson, Habibu Kila, said “it’s not true”.