…as Tinubu vows those behind attack will pay heavily
…Northeast must not return to terrorism, Atiku warns
Widespread condemnation has trailed Saturday’s multiple suicide bomb attacks in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State, which left at least 18 persons dead and dozens of others with various degrees of injuries.
President Bola Tinubu, the US Government, the UN, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, and others, in their separate statements condemned the attacks, which struck a wedding, a hospital, and a funeral in Gwoza, a town near the border with Cameroon.
This is just as President Tinubu has vowed that the terrorists behind the bomb attacks would pay heavily.
The President, while commiserating with the victims’ families as well as the Borno State Government, condemning the bomb attacks, which he described as a desperate act of terror and a clear manifestation of the pressure mounted against terrorists and the success achieved in degrading their capacity to launch offensives.
The President, in a statement on Sunday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, assured that the “purveyors of wanton violence shall have a certain encounter with justice”, saying the “cowardly attacks are only but an isolated episode” as his government would not allow the nation “to slither into an era of fear, tears, sorrow, and blood”.
He stated that his administration was taking necessary measures to secure citizens, emphasizing that efforts would be redoubled to ensure that those who trouble the nation, dispatching precious lives, and disrupting law and order were completely removed.
Similarly, the United States Government condemned “the horrific attacks”, saying “these reprehensible acts of violence show a cruel and heartless disregard for human life”.
“We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those killed and wish a full recovery to the injured. These abhorrent attacks are a stark reminder of the ongoing threat posed by terrorism in the region,” the US Mission said in a message on Sunday.
“We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those killed and wish a full recovery to the injured. These abhorrent attacks are a stark reminder of the ongoing threat posed by terrorism in the region,” it said.
The Mission reiterated its commitment to collaborating with the Nigerian Government to defeat terrorism and bring the perpetrators of these heinous acts to justice.
Also condemning the suicide bomb attacks, the UN noted that “the exact number of people killed and injured remains unknown, but it appears that dozens of people have reportedly been killed and others seriously injured”.
“I am horrified by this attack on civilian populations and condemn such acts in the strongest terms. I stand in solidarity with the Government of Nigeria, and the families and communities of all those affected,” the UN Resident Coordinator, Mohamed Fall, said in a statement.
“On behalf of the United Nations, I remind all parties to the conflict to adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect civilians from harm.
“I have reached out to the Borno State Government to express my condolences and offer any support that the United Nations and the humanitarian community can provide to aid the victims of the attack.”
On his part, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, charged the Nigerian government not to allow the Northeast slide back into terrorism and extreme violence.
Reacting to the multiple suicide attacks carried out at various locations, including a wedding reception and a burial ceremony in Gwoza town, Borno State, blamed the attacks on the government’s lacklustre posture to hold firmly on the frontline.
“It is a sad development that the ugly incidents of terrorism are resurfacing and, indeed, metastasising in the North-East,” Atiku said in a post on X.
“The reported attack by suicide bombers at a wedding reception, funeral procession, and a hospital on Saturday stands condemned.
“It is unfortunate that much of the pushback that had been achieved against the Boko Haram terror sect is being cancelled, owing mainly to the government’s lacklustre posture to hold firmly on the frontline.
“It is thus important to call on the federal authorities to wake up to their responsibility and to make sure that the North-East does not slide back into a theatre of terrorism and extreme violence,” he said.
He condoled with the families of victims of the attacks, praying God to grants a peaceful repose to the souls of the departed.
