Date Published: 12/02/09

Ndiameeh Babrik, Saka Raji Audu and Aliyu Dan Gata, Who has the burden of Truth? By Ndiameeh Babrik

Having read Aliyu Dan Gata's write-up on Sahara reporters website, I think I am in a pole position to defend myself from the charge that I Ndiameeh Babrik wrote under the title Aliyu Dan Gata. I can actually understand Saka Raji Audu's frustration, bitterness and delusion as Aliyu Dan Gata seems to have given him a knock out being a Hausa Man more so with comments left there by various readers that portray Saka as a liar. But if Saka has been following my articles as he is claiming, there is nothing extraordinary in Dan Gata's articles that I have not mentioned before or even more then that. I have written earth shaking articles that made mega headlines before.

I have challenged and dared powerful individuals in some of my articles using my names against all forms of injustices as recent as Weekly Trust of November 28, 2009. I have challenged our senior colleagues in this profession like Mohammed Haruna, Kawu Modibbo Ishaq, Reuben Abati and even Army Generals without using pseudo name as you will call it. I have even written splendid articles on your pay master. I am really at a lost at the illusion Saka is having that I am now writing under the pen name Aliyu Dan Gata. I am personally impressed that Aliyu Dan Gata decided to copy my articles verbatim, what I expected from him are to acknowledge the source so that I may not sue him to court for plagiarism.

Apart from the nitty-gritty of Hausa Land that he went into and quoting copiously from his Qu'ran, there is nothing in those his articles I have not mentioned before. Fortunately for me and unfortunately for Saka the nearest I have seen a Qu'ran is on TV. But Saka calls me Pentecostal Christian one minute, then the next minute a Qu'ran expert. So which one Am I then?

I may not be surprised if  Saka Raji Audu might have concocted this write-up  using Aliyu Dan Gata to simply blackmail my person and tarnish my well earned reputation as a prolific writer on national and international issues since he has noticed that International news media have been carrying my well researched and well thought articles.  I can see the bitterness on his face that Sahara reporters have never carried his articles even once. Poor you! If I were Saka, I will rather advise my principal to address the concerns raised by Aliyu Dan Gata in his articles if they are genuine rather than looking for an innocent person like me for a scapegoat.  My first article appeared in the defunct Concord newspaper in 1992, since then I have not looked backed. It is unfortunate that Saka is fighting a lost war and is therefore looking for a cheap victim to blackmail. This is hopefully my last article on you and your pay master now that he has accepted our challenge and is taking the correction which we wanted to achieve in the first place. But if you look up my articles like “Open letter to my Hausa Brothers” on Gamji.com; “The Sharia Police in Kano” Guardian Newspaper 15 may 2009, “Shekarau, Why he cannot win”,

Barrack Obama; “And He Finally spoke”, “Boko Haram, the North and the Blame Game”, these earth shaking articles amongst others have said more than what Dan Gata has mentioned in his articles. Saka I beg you don't blackmail me to gain cheap sympathy as I can see you are a reactionary writer. Look for your Aliyu Dan Gata elsewhere. You are pointing your accusing fingers at the wrong person.

Ndiameeh Babrik