TWO
school children of the same parents were among the casualties of Monday
night bomb blasts that rocked the Sabongari area of Kano metropolis.Nigerian Tribune also learnt that their father sustained serious injuries and was receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in the city.
Though the Joint Task Force (JTF) put the casualty figure of the blast at 12, sources close to the state chapter of Ohanaeze Ndigbo claimed that over 45 were killed.
It said 39 bodies were reportedly recovered around the Christ Salvation Pentecostal Church, at 41, New Road, as the bomb blast occurred at the peak of evening worship.
Another six bodies were found at Igbo/Enugu road, with several scores of people injured in the area.
A statement signed by JTF Public Relations Officer, Captain Ikedichi Iweha, said the incident occurred at about 2015 hours of July 29, saying that 12 persons were confirmed to have died from both incidents, while a couple of others sustained various degrees of injuries.
According to him, the simultaneous explosions were triggered by persons suspected to be members of the Boko Haram terrorist group and attacked house numbers 38 to 41, New Road and Igbo road, by Enugu road, all in Sabongari area of Fagge Local Government Area.
He, however, noted that the latest incident could have been avoided if citizens maintained vigilance when packages were dropped.
The Ohanaeze Ndigbo said the deceased two children hailed from Anambra State and were in Kano to spend holiday with their parents.
According to the union, the children went to the fellowship in a church with their parents.
The Eze Ndigbo of Kano, Chief Boniface Ibekwe, while condemning the gruesome killing of innocent people by members of Boko Haram sect, described the continuous attack on Sabongari area as worrisome, noting that numerous lives had, so far, been lost.
The Igbo union said the authorities should take more decisive steps over what it described as unprovoked attacks on residents of Sabongari.
Giving its account of the tragedy, in a statement signed by the president of the Kano State chapter of body, Chief Tobias Michael Idika, Ohanaeze Ndigbo said though it still had confidence in the capacity of the authorities to restore normalcy, it was time President Goodluck Jonathan took a decisive action to end the carnage.
It expressed sorrow that the latest incident was almost a similar pattern like those witnessed in the past, with Sabongari, mostly populated by non natives, as the prime target.
“Without fear of contradiction, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Kano registers its deep feelings over the unprovoked attacks on Sabongari Kano, dominated by Ndigbo,” the statement said.
It, however, commended the efforts of the Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone 1, David Omojola, who was accompanied by the state Commissioner of Police, Musa Daura, to the scene of the incident for on-the-spot assessment during the rescue operation.
Giving a further insight into the Monday’s incident, the body said “between 9.00 p.m and 9.30 p.m, some suspected terrorists invaded Sabongari and planted Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), which exploded almost simultaneously at Enugu/Igbo Road, near International Hotel; and on New Road, directly opposite the popular Ado Bayero Square, precisely at No. 38, 39, 40 and 41.
“At 41, New Road, the Christ Salvation Pentecostal Church was also bombed at the peak of evening worship. Ohanaeze’s account can confirm 39 deaths in New Road and six in Igbo/Enugu Road; and also unspecified numbers of people who got injured.
“The team of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Kano State chapter, arrived the scenes at about 9.30 p.m and witnessed the moving of dead bodies and the wounded by security agencies, mostly the army.”
This is war —AfenifereTHE pan-Yoruba organisation, Afenifere, said the explosions and attack in Kano and Borno states, which claimed several lives within 48 hours, were tantamount to a full-scale war by the “blood-sucking Boko Haram sect.”
In a statement signed by its national publicity secretary, the organisation said the tragedies should be a rude awakening to the Federal Government that it should brace up to the security challenge.
Afenifere urged the government to deploy all legitimate means to crush the insurgents and restore law and order in the land.
“It must be clear to the government by now that what is required at this point is to strengthen the military and allied forces in hunting down these elements, by spreading the dragnets nationwide, given new maps being drawn by their activities.
“The government should not hesitate to take all constitutional measures necessary to maintain law and order in any new corridor that the sect may be opening, while intensifying the ongoing military action in states under emergency. Evil must be confronted and not appeased,” Afenifere said.
According to the body, “the brutal killing of innocent citizens in gun and bomb attacks by the dreaded group, just as the army paraded 42 suspected members of the sect in Lagos, with warning from the Directorate of State Security (DSS) that deadlier attacks are on the way, is a signal to the government that it cannot afford to take a pacifist approach, as sympathisers of the sect, who have infiltrated the administration, may be counseling.
“It appears to us in Afenifere that the government was being lured into some false sense of security, so that the sect could re-strategise for more devastating attacks. It would be recalled that all manners of leaders and statesmen were piling pressure on the government to enter into dialogue with the terrorists before the state of emergency was declared in Yobe, Borno and Adamawa states weeks ago.
“The military action that followed the bold move by the government led to a bomb holiday in the North-East, which has been the headquarters of insurgency. Thereafter, the coordinated assault opened an added axis of evil in the North-West to continue the low-intensity warfare, assault and killings.
“It was in the midst of all that the chairman of the Boko Haram panel, Alhaji Taminu Turaki, announced to the country that he had secured cease-fire with Boko Haram. He was later to be disowned by Boko Haram and the latest dangerous assaults being launched by the group clearly suggest that Alhaji Turaki missed the point.
“In the light of the above, Afenifere asks the Federal Government to disband the Turaki-led committee with immediate effect, as it has outlived its usefulness. It also ask for a probe of the chairman of the panel to ascertain where his hoax cease-fire came from.”
Attacks devastating —Kwankwaso
Kano State governor, Dr Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, condemned the blasts on Monday night at New Road and Enugu Road in Kano.
The governor, who visited the scene of the attack early on Tuesday, described the incident as devastating, adding that it was an attack on the whole of Nigeria.
“This attack on Sabongari is an attack on Nigeria, because Muslims and Christians are involved. Several people of different ethnic extraction have either lost their lives or are critically injured. Whoever did this thing targeted Nigeria,” Kwankwaso stressed.
The governor promised that the state government would continue to work with security agencies to maintain peace and protect lives and properties in the state
He appealed to the people to continue to support security agencies to make the state safer.
The governor visited Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital in Kano, to commiserate with victims, while he promised that the government would shoulder the cost of their treatments.
He, therefore, directed the state Commissioner for Health to ensure that the victims got the best of treatment in public or private hospital in the state.
The governor extended heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the incident, “praying Allah to stand by them in this moment of sorrow.”
ACF, JNI condemn attacks
The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) and the apex Muslim organisation, Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), condemned the multiple bomb blasts that rocked Kano on night, describing it as ungodly, especially in the month of Ramadan.
The national publicity secretary of the ACF, Mr Anthony Sani, in a statement on Tuesday, said the forum was shocked and sad over the report of bomb explosions which killed and wounded many people in Kano.
ACF said this act had no place in all religions and decent societies; adding that it desecrated the month of Ramadan.
“This should, therefore, be condemned by all those who cherish core values of humanity, including freedom, justice and common decency.
“It is still the considered opinion of ACF that violence can never resolve any perceived grievances, besides inflicting pains and self-immolation and destruction of innocent people.
“Only constructive engagement can address concerns positively. Many examples abound across the world that support this contention,” the ACF said.
It sympathised with the government and people of Kano State, especially those who lost their loved ones, while praying God to give them the fortitude to bear the losses.
It also prayed for quick recovery for those who were wounded in the incident.
Similarly, JNI, in a statement signed by its Secretary General, Dr Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, said it received the news with bewilderment.
“We strongly condemn the inhuman and ungodly act in its totality, as it is reprehensible, and we equally call for calm and restraint.
“As it has always been our prayers, whatsoever is the intent/motive of the perpetrators of these contemptible acts, they will never succeed insha’Allah,” the statement added.
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