Wife of Nigerian opposition figure hacked to death

NIGERIA – The wife of a senior Nigerian opposition figure was hacked to death in the early hours of Saturday morning by suspected hired assassins, her sister said.

The killing follows a growing wave of political instability in the oil exporting country as powerful factions in the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) jostle for positions ahead of elections in 2007. Police arrested six watchmen at the house.They had no immediate comment on the allegation that hired killers were involved and said they would issue a statement later.Sadatu Abubakar Rimi was hacked to death in the living room of her house in the northern city of Kano.She was the wife of former presidential aspirant Mohammed Abubakar Rimi, who recently left the PDP to oppose a third term for Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo .”We heard a bang on the door and on coming out we saw Hajia (Sadata) in a pool of blood and she was stone dead,” her sister Halima told reporters at the house.”They just came to kill her,” she added.The victim’s husband, who challenged Obasanjo for the ruling party ticket in 2003, was on a trip to nearby Kaduna at the time of the attack.The killers took nothing from the house, Halima said.Political tensions ahead of 2007 elections have grown steadily over the past few months, as Obasanjo has purged the PDP of rivals and undermined Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who wants to succeed him.Ruled by military dictators for most of its history since independence in 1960, Nigeria returned to civilian government in 1999 but rigging, organised thuggery and assassinations remain a feature of political life.-Nampa-ReutersPolice arrested six watchmen at the house.They had no immediate comment on the allegation that hired killers were involved and said they would issue a statement later.Sadatu Abubakar Rimi was hacked to death in the living room of her house in the northern city of Kano.She was the wife of former presidential aspirant Mohammed Abubakar Rimi, who recently left the PDP to oppose a third term for Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo .”We heard a bang on the door and on coming out we saw Hajia (Sadata) in a pool of blood and she was stone dead,” her sister Halima told reporters at the house.”They just came to kill her,” she added.The victim’s husband, who challenged Obasanjo for the ruling party ticket in 2003, was on a trip to nearby Kaduna at the time of the attack.The killers took nothing from the house, Halima said.Political tensions ahead of 2007 elections have grown steadily over the past few months, as Obasanjo has purged the PDP of rivals and undermined Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who wants to succeed him.Ruled by military dictators for most of its history since independence in 1960, Nigeria returned to civilian government in 1999 but rigging, organised thuggery and assassinations remain a feature of political life.-Nampa-Reuters