That Curious Attack On Mustapha Gubio.

That Curious Attack On Mustapha Gubio.

By: Inuwa Bwala.

It was both chilling and curious, leaving many people still asking, the obvious question about what could be the motive behind last weeks attack on the convoy of Engineer Mustapha Gubio, governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, for Borno state.

It is a truism that Boko Haram/ISWAP have been operating in Borno since 2009, especially in the Lake Chad axis, and the Gubio-Kareto-Damasak highway in northern Borno has been volatile.

It is a known fact that, the attackers often target soft spots and unguarded personnel.
But targetting Gubio and his entourage which was returning to Maiduguri after a thank-you tour to APC members in Damasak, headquarters of Mobbar Local Government Area, following his emergence as the party’s consensus candidate, is curious and worrisome.

It is not enough to say, that, the route has been plied by the state governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, who has survived many such attacks.

Gubio’s convoy may not be less fortified, but against the background of our experiences and the fact that we have not experienced such in a long time, makes it more curious to ask, if Gubio is a particular target.

According to the Police, the convoy was targeted with Improvised Explosive Devices and Rocket Propelled Grenades, which again makes it obvious that the attack was premeditated.

A police armoured vehicle leading the convoy detonated a landmine and was badly damaged, which adds another angle to the possibility of a well planned ambush, that was not meant to give the candidate any chance of escape.

The attackers were said to have laid ambush with planted IEDs targeting the convoy and also fired several RPGs, implying a more organized act, different from the hitherto rag tag approach of Boko Haram or ISWAP.

Thanks to the combined team of soldiers, police, NSCDC, DSS, Civilian JTF and vigilante groups, who counter-engaged the attackers and forced them to retreat into the surrounding bush. A scan of the surrounding by Police tactical operatives who cleared the route to neutralise secondary explosive threats, points to the sophistication of Gubio’s security network.

AAlthough, no casualty was recorded among Gubio’s, government officials, or other political stakeholders in the entourage, it remains a terrifying moment, and one may be tempted to ask, who wants Gubio, dead?

One may say, that, the attack highlights the persistent security threat along the 156km Gubio-Kareto-Damasak corridor, a route long regarded as a flashpoint due to insurgent activity, but given our experiences with the targetting of political leaders in the past, a curious mind may not dismiss this as one of such cases of random incidents.

This is not the first time a high-profile Borno politician has been targeted. It may be recalled that, in the build up to the 2011 elections, the governorship candidate of the same ruling party, the APC, was ambushed and killed.

Several other politicians and businessmen had been targeted and killed in very curious circumstances.

As recent as 2020, the convoy of Governor Babagana Zulum was attacked near Baga, and the real circumstances surrounding the incident have remained cloudy.

To sweep this one under the carpet, as a mere Boko Haram ISWAP attack: to me may leave a window open for further mischief.
I have known Engineer Mustapha Gubio, as a consumate gentleman, who cannot hurt a fly.

His emergence as APC’s flagbearer has a lot of prospects, given his pledge to consolidate on Governor Zulum’s achievements in security, resettlement, education and agriculture.

I am aware that investigators may not have not named any individual or political actor behind the attack for now, but citizens are eager.

While accusing fingers point in the direction of Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists, who may be seeking to destabilize the 2027 political process, a deeper linning could prop up another dangerous design.

As Borno counts its blessings that Gubio survived, the poser remains: Who wants Gubio dead? Until this is resolved and the terrorist, who may be mere canonfodders are fully uprooted, candidates, voters, and convoys will continue to move under the shadow of that question.

That Curious Attack On Mustapha Gubio.