An APC campaign vehicle was set on fire in Yankara town in Faskari Local Government Area of Katsina State on Saturday as supporters travelled to a rally by Governor Dikko Umaru Radda.
The vehicle belonged to the Musa Adamu Network. Alhaji Nura Sule Yandaki the caucus chairman and eleven members of his team were heading to the event when the trouble started. Eyewitnesses said angry youths blocked the main road and attacked the convoy. Several people were injured. Some accounts claimed two supporters suffered fatal injuries but police had not confirmed the numbers by Saturday night. Shops were also damaged.
The Katsina State Government said the incident began during a Maulud procession. Participants disagreed with security personnel over the route which caused confusion on a public street. Suspected hoodlums then attacked passing vehicles. Officials stressed that the violence had no connection to the governor or the rally.
Governor Radda passed through Yankara safely. He visited the District Head palace and checked renovation work at the local government secretariat before going to the campaign rally in Faskari. At the rally he announced the opening of the Faskari General Hospital which fulfilled an earlier promise. He spoke about gains in health care security education and infrastructure.
Shamsuddeen Sani Lema the secretary of the Musa Adamu Network condemned the attack as unacceptable and called on security agencies to identify and prosecute those responsible. The state government through Chief Press Secretary Ibrahim Kaula Mohammed called for a full investigation and urged residents to stay calm and verify information before sharing it. This follows earlier attacks on APC campaign convoys in the Malumfashi area where stones damaged vehicles and police arrested fourteen people.
Reports and surveys link the anger in parts of the North including Katsina to ongoing insecurity and economic hardship under President Bola Tinubu. Banditry kidnappings and attacks by armed groups continue in Katsina and neighbouring states. Farmers cannot safely reach their lands in some areas and schools have closed in places affected by violence.
A recent BusinessDay survey found Tinubu’s approval rating at about 30 percent with nearly half of respondents disapproving. About 62 percent said they were worse off economically than three years ago. Afrobarometer and other polls show most Nigerians rate the economy as bad and list the cost of living crime and security as top problems they want solved.
The World Bank has noted rising poverty numbers since the fuel subsidy removal in 2023 which raised living costs sharply. Opposition voices and some northern figures have pointed to these issues as reasons many do not support a second term for Tinubu in the 2027 election. Analysts say the combination of persistent violence and daily struggles with food prices jobs and power could shape voter choices especially in the North where campaign activities have faced disruption.
