Woman sets self ablaze in Tafawa Balewa’s family house

A middle-aged woman has set herself ablaze inside the family house of the late Prime Minister, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa.

It was gathered that the woman, who was said to be mentally unstable, was quickly rescued by bystanders and rushed to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), where she later gave up the ghost.

She was said to have died due to the severe burns sustained in the inferno.

Eyewitnesses said the woman had arrived at the residence in a commercial tricycle carrying a gallon of petrol on Friday, September 26, 2025.

Upon entry, she asked to see Yelwa Abubakar Balewa, one of the late Prime Minister’s daughters and Chairperson of the Bauchi State Orphans and Vulnerable Children Agency (BASOVCA).

When told that Yelwa was not at home, the woman allegedly poured petrol on herself at the main entrance and struck a match.

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The Bauchi State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Mohammed Ahmed Wakil, described it as “most unfortunate,” noting that the Commissioner of Police, Sani-Omolori Aliyu, had ordered a discreet investigation into the incident.

Wakil revealed that the woman was rescued alive and admitted at ATBUTH, where police recorded her statement before her death.

Wakil noted that the woman, during interrogation, said she did not know the liquid she carried was petrol, stating that she thought it was water.

“Investigations later revealed that she had a history of mental illness, which developed after the birth of her last child, according to neighbours and acquaintances,” the police spokesman said.

The Star