“The only thing I will say is to pray for him (Osinbajo) and the entire nation, that peace will reign.” With those words, the grieving father of late Hanifa Abubakar, the 6-year old school pupil kidnapped and subsequently murdered by her school proprietor, prayed for Nigeria.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo Tuesday paid a condolence visit to the family of the murdered Kano girl at Yankaba, Dakata Junction, off Hadejia road, Kano State.
The Vice President, accompanied by Kano State Governor, Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje, some members of the National Assembly, including Sen. Kabiru Gaya, among others, were received at the residence of the slain schoolgirl, by her father, Alhaji Abubakar Abdulsalam.
During the visit, prayers were offered for the departed and the VP expressed condolences on behalf of the President and himself to the family, especially the deceased mother, Murjanatu, and the father, both of whom were present during the visit, according to presidential spokesman, Mr. Laolu Akande.
On his part, Alhaji Abubakar, father of the slain schoolgirl, expressed gratitude to the President and the Vice President for the visit and the condolences to his family over the killing of his daughter.
The visibly emotional father of the deceased, who summoned courage to speak to the press described the Vice President’s visit as an honour to his entire family, praying for God’s blessings on the President, the VP and for peace in the country.
According to him, “I am rather speechless, I don’t have enough words to quantify my joy and gratitude over the visit of the Vice President to my family to condole me.
“As I told him, it should be the other way round, the Vice President is our father; we are supposed to go and pay him a visit, not him coming to us. However, I am grateful, I am sincerely honoured. The only thing I will say is to pray for him and the entire nation, that peace will reign.”
According to a report, the lack of a defence team on Monday stalled the trial of Abdulmalik Tanko and two others for the alleged kidnap and murder last month in Kano of a five-year-old pupil, Hanifa Abubakar.
The Premium Times, an online newspaper reported that Mr Tanko, Hashimu Isyaku and Fatima Jibrin, appeared before Kano State High Court No. 6 for hearing in the case by the trial judge, Usman Na-Abba.
The report adds: The three were charged with criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, concealing/keeping in confinement a kidnapped person and culpable homicide, offences the prosecution said are contrary to Sections 97, 274, 277 and 221 of the Penal Code.
On Monday, they were docked without legal representations.
The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, M. A. Lawal, who is the state counsel, prayed the court to decide if the proceeding could go ahead despite the accused persons not having lawyers.
The judge, Mr Na-abba, then asked the defendants, starting from the principal suspect, Mr Tanko, if they could engage the service of lawyers or want the state government to provide them some.
Mr Tanko, who is the first accused person, said he could not hire a lawyer and wants the state to provide him one.
Mr Isyaku, the second defendant, and the third defendant, Ms Jibrin, also said they want the state to provide them lawyers.
The attorney-general then prayed the court to adjourn the hearing to February 14 to enable the state to provide lawyers for the accused persons as they had requested.
The judge then granted the state counsel’s prayer and adjourned to Monday, February 14 for the continuation of the trial when the accused persons would have their lawyers.
Mr Lawal also told the court of their application to substitute the charges filed by the state against the accused persons on February 1 with the one filed on February 2, a prayer that was granted by the judge