Bauchi State Police Command has assured the student community of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) that the individuals who fatally stabbed Joseph Agabaidu, a 500-Level Geology student, will be apprehended within days.
The Police Commissioner, Auwal Musa Mohammed, gave this assurance on Wednesday at the Command Headquarters during a meeting with the leadership of the Students Union Government (SUG) and the National Union of Bauchi State Students (NUBASS).
He revealed that preliminary investigations indicated that Joseph Agabaidu was killed while defending his 28-year-old girlfriend, Philomena Ahobee, a student of Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic (ATP).
The Commissioner, responding to the Student Union leaders, observed a minute of silence in honor of the deceased.
While accepting the letter, the CP assured them of the deployment of the intelligence and operational assets of the Command to the affected areas. He also ordered the posting of more personnel and patrol vans for constant visibility patrols in the area.
He reiterated that the primary obligation of the Police is to protect the lives and properties of citizens, emphasizing that excessive use of force is not the only available option for a police officer in matters of conflict and crisis resolution.
He stressed that in the process of policing society, certain “unavoidable problems” arise, and even in such situations, there is a need for the utmost demonstration of professionalism. He emphasized that “Right cannot be fought through violence but by way of reconciliation.”
The Commissioner lamented that it was wrong for the students to take the law into their own hands in a matter that only higher institutions and other relevant stakeholders can adjudicate. This created a vacuum for unscrupulous persons to hijack the protest and turn it into a violent confrontation with the school authority.
CP Auwal Musa Muhammed encouraged residents of the state to remain law-abiding, vigilant, and promptly report suspected criminals and their activities to the police, as the command is committed to lasting peace.
He assured that efforts are being intensified to apprehend the culprit(s) responsible for the inhumane act on the deceased and guaranteed that justice would be served unfailingly.
According to the Command PPRO, SP Ahmed Wakili, the visit of the Students Union leaders was prompted by the recent incident on 02/12/2023, where unknown persons snatched a handbag containing a mobile phone belonging to Philomena Ahobee, a student of Abubakar Tatari Polytechnic (ATAP) Bauchi.
The Command PPRO further stated that in an attempt to help retrieve the handbag, Joseph Agbaidu, the victim, was fatally stabbed by the assailant(s). The victim was rushed to Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH) Bauchi for treatment but was certified dead while on admission by a medical doctor.
Addressing the CP, the leadership of the Students Union condemned the violent protest by some erring students of the university and commended the CP for his swift response in quelling it. The student leaders presented a letter of request to the Commissioner of Police, soliciting more security presence around their communities.
