The senator representing Bauchi South, Shehu Buba, has asked Nigeria’s security agencies to investigate allegations linking him to banditry, terrorism financing and kidnapping.
Mr Buba, the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) governorship candidate in the state for the 2027 election, announced this at a press conference in Bauchi on Monday.
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He said his legal team, led by a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Yakubu Maikyau, had written to the State Security Service (SSS), the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), and the Nigeria Police Force, requesting investigations into the allegations.
Mr Buba said he had also voluntarily submitted himself to the SSS for investigation.
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“I have nothing to hide, and I have nothing to fear from any legitimate investigation,” he said.
The senator denied sponsoring, financing, arming, facilitating or supporting banditry, terrorism, kidnapping or any criminal organisation.
He challenged anyone with evidence linking him to the alleged crimes to submit it to the security agencies rather than circulate the claims on social media.
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Mr Buba said he was prepared to face prosecution if investigators established a prima facie case against him and would accept the consequences if convicted by a competent court.
He said his lawyers provided the security agencies with documents, including his September 2025 petition to the police, information on criminal proceedings before the Federal High Court in Abuja, a 7 September 2026 petition seeking Interpol intervention and links to social media publications containing some of the allegations.
Copies of the submissions, he said, were also forwarded to the National Security Adviser, Chief of Defence Intelligence, Chief of Defence Staff and Minister of Defence.
The allegations
Mr Buba’s request for an investigation follows renewed allegations linking him to banditry, which he denied in a statement reported by PREMIUM TIMES on 7 September.
The allegations followed an online interview conducted by a content creator known as D English Alhaji with a man identified as Hassan Husseini, who had previously been associated with the senator.
Mr Husseini accused the senator of harbouring bandit leaders and supporting banditry. He also alleged that people linked to the wanted bandit leader Dogo Gide were brought to Abuja for specialised training with the assistance of an aide to the senator.
Mr Buba rejected the claims, saying videos and photographs circulated online had been misrepresented.
He said he first came into contact with Mr Husseini in 2024 after the latter was introduced to him as an orphan seeking educational assistance.
According to the senator, he enrolled him in a private college in Kaduna and an Islamic school before their relationship deteriorated.
Mr Buba also said he filed a criminal complaint in the Republic of Niger against the man over alleged defamation and electronic insults.
Five defendants were arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja in October 2025 following an earlier police petition by the senator.
The charges include criminal conspiracy, cyberstalking, criminal defamation, advance-fee fraud and extortion.
The case is scheduled to continue on 29 September.
Mr Buba has faced allegations concerning suspected bandits since 2024.
PREMIUM TIMES previously reported allegations that people suspected of links to banditry were among those he sponsored for the Hajj pilgrimage.
The senator acknowledged sponsoring people for the pilgrimage but said traditional rulers recommended the beneficiaries after he requested the names of people who could benefit from the programme.
Mr Buba, a former chairperson of the Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence, said some engagements undertaken while he held the position were now being portrayed as evidence of relationships with criminal groups.
He currently chairs the Senate Committee on Livestock and Animal Husbandry.
“If there is evidence against me, let it be produced,” Mr Buba said. “If there is none, those who have deliberately manufactured and circulated these allegations should equally be held accountable under the law.”
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