NIGERIANS
have continued to express outrage over the offensive killing of 42
students of Government Secondary School in Mamudo, Yobe, with many
describing the act as barbaric, horrendous and ignoble.This is just as the state Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Mohammed Lamin, confirmed to Governor Ibrahim Gaidam that two more students later died at Potiskum General Hospital, adding that a resident of Mamudo, who was traced to his home, was also killed shortly after the attack on the school.
President Goodluck Jonathan, reacting to the killing, said any person who targeted innocent children as a result of emotional dysfunction would certainly burn in hell.
Speaking through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, on Sunday, President Jonathan said the war on terror would continue until the dastardly acts of the group were brought to an end.
According to the presidential spokesman, “the killing is barbaric and completely wicked,” adding that “anybody who will target innocent children for any kind of grief or emotional dysfunction will certainly go to hell.”
Abati said President Jonathan sympathised with the families affected and stood by them at the moment of grief, adding that “the killing is most unfortunate and regrettable.”
It’s inhuman, barbaric - Mark
Senate President, David Mark, described as inhuman, barbaric and unacceptable, the act of using children as targets and shield by terrorists.
While reacting to the gruesome murder of the children, Mark said “even in war situations, children and women are protected. Killing children is akin to cutting down the future of a people. This is inhuman, barbaric and unacceptable to any right-thinking member of the society.
“For no reason, the lives of these promising children were needlessly cut down by the heartless people. This cannot be a way of life. Enough of this bloodshed.”
He said the perpetrators had committed crime against God and humanity.
Going biblical, he referred to Mark 9:42: “And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a milestone were hanged about his neck and he were cast into the sea.”
He urged security operatives to step up their surveillance and monitoring activities, so as to halt the trend and bring the perpetrators to justice.
Mark, while sympathising with the bereaved families, assured that the National Assembly would continue to give priority to appropriations to security operatives, for them to carry out their duties without hitches.
It’s ignoble, horrendous - Tambuwal
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Aminu Tambuwal, described the killing as ignoble, wicked and horrendous.
In a statement issued in Abuja at the weekend by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Malam Imam Imam, Tambuwal tasked security agencies to fish out perpetrators and bring them justice, declaring that no reason could be given to justify such a dreadful act.
He said the gains recorded by security agencies in their battle against terror in the country in recent weeks should be built upon, in order to protect the citizens at all times.
While expressing sympathy with the families of the victims, Tambuwal urged Nigerians to be more vigilant and to help security agencies with useful information to help secure their areas.
Nigeria’s security very weak - el-Rufai
Former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Nasir el-Rufa’i, described Nigeria’s security as very weak and urged the electorate not to vote for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in forthcoming elections.
el-Rufa’i, in an interview in Zaria, Kaduna State, at the weekend, said it was sad that in Nigeria, insecurity was getting worse every day, while the government was getting weaker.
According to him, there was a culture of impunity, a reason insurgents could kill anyone and get away with it.
“It is a major problem, but we have our own strategy on how to deal with it, and we shall apply it when the time comes,” he said.
Commenting of the preparation for 2015, he said “I don’t think 2015 is around the corner, it is two years from now, so it is not around the corner, but APC (All Progressives Congress) is capable of kicking the PDP out of power.
“The PDP has ruled the country and it has failed to live up to its promises, it has not provided us with basic outlets of security and prosperity.
“ So, we believe that in a fair and free election, APC is going to prevail over them, and all we are doing now is to come together, and when we come together, we will organise ourselves to be sure that we are all over the country and put in place a system to protect our votes.
“I think the impact of APC can be gauged from the performance of states already being controlled by the parties that constitute APC. You can’t compare the performances of Governors (Rauf) Aregbesola and (Babatunde) Fashola, for instance, to some of those PDP governors that only know how to get allocations and share.
“So we can be confident that Nigerians can see the difference between a government and a gang of thieves, and they will vote for us.”
FG’ll not spare perpetrators - Moro
Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, in a statement in Abuja, on Sunday, vowed that the Federal Government would not spare any efforts in ensuring that the perpetrators and sponsors of the heinous act are brought to book.
A statement signed by his special assistant on media, Mr George Udoh, described the killing of innocent students and defenceless civilians as “barbaric, morally reprehensible and atrocious.”
He lamented that “it is unthinkable that rational minds will just wake up with only one devilish thing in mind; to cause sorrow to families and wreak deep psychological pain on the society for reasons yet to be known by Nigerians.”
Moro added that he was deeply worried and regretted that nothing in the world could justify the dastardly act, taking into account the fact that the Federal Government had repeatedly extended the olive branch to members of Boko Haram.
He appealed to members of the group to tread the path of peace by accepting the amnesty proposed for it by the Federal Government under the leadership of President Jonathan.
He stressed that terrorism portended negative consequences for “our country, which needs all the goodwill of its global partners, all their foreign investment it can muster, as well as an environment conducive for development of our great nation Nigeria.”
Moro, who sympathised with the families of the students and civilians who lost their lives, urged Nigerians to continue to imbibe the spirit of brotherhood, by exposing the very few responsible for the security problems the nation was currently facing.
He stressed that the security agencies were working round the clock to ensure that the perpetrators and their sponsors were brought to book.
Northern govs condemn attack
The Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF) condemned the killing, describing it as wicked and cruel.
Chairman of the forum and Niger State governor, Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, said the senseless killing was a major setback in the fight against terrorism.
In a statement by his media aide, Danladi Ndayebo, Aliyu said no amount of grievance could justify the killing.
JTF in search of killers
The Joint Task Force (JTF) has embarked on aggressive patrol of the state.
Defence spokesperson, Brigadier-General Chris Olukolade, told the Nigerian Tribune that the troops embarked on the cordon and search approach, in order to track down the perpetrators of the heinous crime.
He said further security measures had been adopted in order to forestall a recurrence of the dastardly act of last Saturday, adding that members of the troop were on 24 hours patrol, to ensure the act did not happen again.
Brigadier-General Olukolade assured that security agencies were on top of the situation.
The JTF had initially confirmed that 42 students were killed by suspected members of the Boko Haram sect.
Spokesperson of JTF in Yobe State, Lieutenant Eli Lazarus, who confirmed the incident, said the attackers stormed the school and began shooting from different directions.
An official of the Potiskum General Hospital, Haliru Aliyua, also confirmed the casualty to the media, saying “we received 42 dead bodies of students and other staff of Government Secondary School (in) Mamudo last night. Some of them had gunshot wounds while many of them had burns and ruptured tissues.”
Yobe secondary schools shut
Yobe State governor, Alhaji Gaidam, has directed that all secondary schools in the state be closed down from today until a new academic session begins in September.
A statement signed by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Information, Abdullahi Bego, shortly after returning from Mamudo, said “the measure is to allow government, in collaboration with the Military Task Force and community leaders, to evaluate and evoke better and additional strategies that would ensure the safety of and security of students and their teachers.”
Earlier, Alhaji Gaidam had visited Government Secondary School, Mamudo, 24 hours after the incident, where the state Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Lamin, informed him that two more students later died while on admission.
Governor Gaidam described the act as inhuman, while he called on security forces to change their modus operandi in checking the activities of the dreaded Islamists.
He also called on the Chief of Defence Staff and the security forces to, as a matter of urgency, consider the restoration of GSM services in the three states under the state of emergency.
He said perimeter fence would be constructed at boarding schools in the state, so that the JTF would provide the needed security across all schools in the state.
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