By Emmanuel Awari-Jalingo
About 48 hours after the arrest and detention of a frontline Senatorial Contender for Taraba Central Senatorial District, Alhaji Abdullahi Bello Bodejo by the Department of State Services (DSS) in Jalingo, the Taraba State Capital, pressure has continued to mount on him to withdraw from the race.
Bodejo who was arrested in Jalingo on May 7th 2026 by officials of the DSS and flown to Abuja overnight was later handed over to the EFCC where he has remained in custody up to the time of filing this report.
Investigation reveals that two days after his detention at the EFCC, authorities allegedly approached and advised him to withdraw from the Senatorial contest as one of the conditions for his release.
It was further gathered that the authorities had told Bodejo, who is also the National President of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore Socio-Cultural Association, not to contest the 2027 Senatorial Seat but to rather wait until 2031.
Meanwhile, Bodejo’s Director of Campaign Alhaji Adamu Isa has condemned the way and manner the Senatorial Aspirant was arrested, humiliated and flown to Abuja like a common criminal in the presence of his teeming supporters.
He added that Bodejo, as a strong member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has worked tirelessly for the party, including using his personal resources and connections to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during the 2023 Presidential elections.
According to the Director General, if some people are not comfortable with the Senatorial conntest of Bodejo, they could have invited him to a dialogue rather than using security agents to intimidate and harass him.
Adamu however observed that Bodejo as a peace loving Nigerian has the right to decide on either to withdraw or not to withdraw from the race but that a genuine dialogue must take place among all parties involved.
He argued that the Consensus Committee set up by the Taraba APC never approached Bodejo for any meeting before his arrest.
The DG appealed to the National Secretariat and critical stakeholders of the APC to intervene in the matter and ensure that justice is done and Bodejo is urgently released from detention.
He also called on all supporters of Alhaji Abdullahi Bello Bodejo to remain calm and law be abiding.