47 arrested with guns during Bauchi bye-election – Police

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No fewer than 47 suspects were arrested on Saturday during the bye-election in Disina State Constituency, Shira Local Government Area of Bauchi State.

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The suspects, who were allegedly armed with guns, cutlasses, and sticks, were reportedly posing as operatives of a state-owned security outfit.

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According to the Bauchi State Police Command, the suspects were arrested across various polling units.

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The Police Public Relations Officer of the command, Nafiu Habib, said in a statement on Saturday, “Following our deployment for election duty in Disina State Constituency, Shira LGA, 47 operatives claiming to be members of a state-owned security outfit were arrested within polling units.

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“They were found in possession of guns, cutlasses, and sticks, in contravention of the Electoral Act and the security directives earlier issued.”

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The PPRO added that the suspects were immediately taken into custody, while firearms and other dangerous weapons were recovered from them.

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Habib noted that the Commissioner of Police, Sani-Omolori Aliyu, condemned the development and directed that the suspects be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.

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He quoted the CP as describing the incident as a “blatant disregard for lawful directives and an attempt to undermine the electoral process.”

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The command reiterated its commitment to ensuring a peaceful, credible, and hitch-free bye-election.

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It warned that “any person or group, regardless of status, who attempts to disrupt the electoral process or cause a breach of peace will be decisively dealt with.”

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The police also called on members of the public to remain law-abiding and report suspicious activities to the authorities.

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The Bauchi State Police Command had, in a statement issued on Friday, outlined security arrangements for the bye-elections in Disina State Constituency, Shira Local Government Area, and Sakwa State Constituency, Zaki Local Government Area.

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In the statement, the command unequivocally declared that “state-owned security outfits, quasi-security agencies, private security guards, and vigilante groups are not allowed to participate in election security coverage.”

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The command stated that only “statutorily recognised security agencies under the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security are mandated to provide security for the elections.”

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Meanwhile, in Gombe State, the National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission in charge of the North-East, Rear Admiral Jamila Abubakar-Sadiq (retd.), described the Gombe/Kwami/Funakaye Federal Constituency bye-election as peaceful.

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She, however, expressed concern over what she described as a low turnout of voters in some polling units.

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Abubakar-Sadiq, who observed the election, said the electoral process commenced smoothly, with the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System machines and other equipment functioning as expected in the polling units visited.

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The INEC official, whose area of responsibility covers Bauchi and Gombe states, spoke while monitoring the exercise across some polling units in the constituency on Saturday.

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She said, “The environment is peaceful. People are out in some places, but I can tell you what I observe is a low turnout of voters.”

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According to her, voting commenced at 8:30am, but only a few voters had arrived at most of the polling units visited by the monitoring team at the early stage of the exercise.

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Asked whether transportation, distance to polling units, or lack of awareness could be responsible for the low turnout, Abubakar-Sadiq ruled out those possibilities based on her observations.

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“Well, I don’t think so. None of the above. I think they are just probably taking their time to come out. All the challenges that you’ve listed, it’s not a challenge to them. They are just taking their time. You can see they are just coming out now,” she said.

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The Gombe/Kwami/Funakaye Federal Constituency bye-election was conducted to fill the vacant seat previously occupied by a former lawmaker, Yaya Tongo, who died on June 12, 2026.

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The constituency has 495,851 registered voters across Gombe, Kwami, and Funakaye Local Government Areas.

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Five political parties participated in the election, according to the final list released by INEC.

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The parties included the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Allied Peoples Movement, All Progressives Congress, Action Peoples Party, and Labour Party.

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The election was conducted across 903 polling units in the three local government areas.

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Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Yahaya, expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the bye-election, describing the exercise as peaceful and well-organised.

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Yahaya, who spoke after casting his vote at Yahaya Umaru 010 polling unit, said the turnout was encouraging despite the election being a bye-election.

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The governor said reports from the three local government areas making up the federal constituency indicated that the election was progressing smoothly.

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He added, “It’s about the same report everywhere, people are happy. It’s only three local governments—Gombe, Kwami, Funakaye—and I have gotten reports that the election was going on well and it will end well.”

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