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Senator Shehu Buba has rejected allegations linking him to banditry, stating that viral videos circulating on social media are part of a deliberate campaign to damage his reputation.
Buba, who represents Bauchi South and formerly chaired the Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence, addressed the claims in a statement issued on Sunday.
“For much of my public life, I have resisted the temptation to respond to every allegation, criticism or provocation directed at me,” Buba said.
“Citizens have a legitimate right to scrutinise those entrusted with public responsibility, and public officials must be prepared to account for their conduct.”
The controversy began after a content creator known as ‘D English Alhaji’ shared videos allegedly showing bandit kingpins visiting the senator’s residence.
Buba said the attacks began after he intervened in a September 2024 incident in which a militia group allegedly killed two charcoal sellers in his constituency and he visited the bereaved families and demanded justice.
“Following my intervention, the Bauchi State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs publicly linked my name to banditry — an allegation I rejected as false and unsupported by evidence,” Buba said.
“Subsequently, Governor Bala Mohammed petitioned President Bola Tinubu that I sponsored a ‘bandit kingpin’ to perform the 2024 Hajj through an aide named Yahaya Ibrahim.
“I categorically denied these allegations. I stated that I had no aide by the name cited and invited security agencies to investigate.”
Buba said a young man he had sponsored for education, Hassan Husseini, later abandoned his studies and used photographs and videos taken at the senator’s residence to create false narratives.
“I later discovered that, while under my care, he had recorded photographs and videos of visitors to my residence. These materials later formed the basis of allegations circulated on social media,” Buba said.
Some of those circulating the videos later demanded money from him, according to the senator, adding that he petitioned the police, leading to the arrest of five suspects who were arraigned in October 2025 on charges including criminal conspiracy and extortion.
Buba also disclosed that he had filed a criminal complaint against Hassan Saleh Hussein in Niger Republic for defamation carried out via electronic communication.
“Meanwhile, I have submitted a formal criminal complaint to the Public Prosecutor at the Tribunal of First Instance in Niamey, Niger Republic, through a legal practitioner in that country, seeking the criminal prosecution of Hassan Saleh Hussein for defamation and insult carried out via electronic communication,” he stated.
