Unknown gunmen shoot at Faleke’s vehicle

HOUSE of Representatives member James Faleke escaped unhurt after the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) conveying him from Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, to Abuja, was shot at by unknown assailants.


A report he lodged at the Gwagwalada Police Division on the outskirt of the Federal Capital City (FCT) said the lawmaker was attacked between 7 p.m and 7.30 p.m on Sunday.

He said bullets hit the front windshield of his bullet-proof vehicle thrice near the first bridge at Gwagwalada.

Narrating the incident, Faleke said: “I was returning from Kogi State on November 6 and my vehicle was shot at at the first bridge in Gwagwalada, which is under construction between 7 p.m and 7.30 p.m.

“About three bullets hit my jeep, but thank God, it was a bulletproof car. The bullets cracked the windscreen but did not penetrate. I’m grateful to God for the life of my driver, orderly and myself. We reported the incident to the Police Division in Gwagwalada, FCT.”

Faleke was the running mate to the Kogi State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the November 21, 2015 election, the late Prince Abubakar Audu.

The deceased was set to win the poll before the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared it inconclusive and ordered a supplementary election on December 5.

He challenged INEC’s decision and the nomination of another candidate by the APC as Audu’s replacement at the rerun.

Faleke’s appeal ended at the Supreme Court, which ruled that the party was in order to field another candidate for the supplementary election.