David Salifu, former secretary to the Benue State Government, died after being shot by suspected bandits on the Wukari-Makurdi route.
Salifu, who worked as SSG under former Governor Gabriel Suswam, was also a lecturer at the Federal University in Wukari, Taraba State.
According to sources, the former SSG was travelling from Wukari to Makurdi on Thursday when he was stopped by armed men.
According to sources, his assailants allegedly forced him to exit his vehicle and get on a motorcycle but then shot him after he resisted.
Confirming the incident on Friday, a close associate of the deceased and the African Democratic Congress’ Benue South senatorial candidate, David Olofu, said Salifu died in the early hours of Friday at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital, Makurdi.
“He was a member of my campaign council and a confidant. I learnt that he (Salifu) left Wukari and was coming to Benue when he encountered hoodlums at the outskirts of Wukari.
“They stopped his car and asked him to come down, but the bandits thereafter shot him.
“He was taken to the teaching hospital in Wukari, but due to the seriousness of the injury, we spoke to the vice chancellor of the University of Wukari, who released an ambulance to bring him to Abuja with a team of doctors.
“But somehow, he was taken to the Benue State University Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, where he died in the early hours of today,” Olofu said.
The facts surrounding why Salifu was transferred to Makurdi instead of Abuja could not be immediately ascertained.
Efforts to acquire the reply of the Taraba State Police Command were fruitless as of the time of reporting this article.
