Borno suicide blast : Atiku mourns victims

FORMER Vice President and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar on Thursday mourned the victims of the Wednesday’s evening suicide bombing in Maiduguri, Borno State that claimed several lives and left scores wounded.

In a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja yesterday by his Media Office, the former Vice President described as disturbing the increasing cases of girls being used as suicide bombers in the Country.

According to him, “We need our girls to be mothers, teachers and scientists of the future. Certainly not being used to carry out extremist ideologies.”

The bomb explosion in Maiduguri was reported to have been carried out by four female suicide bombers – a signature of Boko Haram bomb blast attacks in recent times.

The former Vice President noted that the Boko Haram sect “is still a potent threat to the lives and property of Nigerians, especially in the North-East region of the country “and urged Nigerians to remain on their guards and partner with security operatives closest to them to report suspicious activities.

Said he,”We are all in this together. We must work closely with security operatives on the ground to make sure that our land is secure and our lives are safe. The threat that we face is real and our determination to face the threat must be daring

“I pray to God for a peaceful repose of the dead and fortitude to their bereaved families and friends.”

Meanwhile, the former Vice President condemns the killing of two policemen during a kidnap operation of two foreigners, one American and a Canadian along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway on Tuesday.

Atiku explained that while kidnapping on its own was a criminal act, it was equally an act of sabotage against the national economy.

According to him, “Kidnapping drives away foreign investors. It drives away corporate and individual donors from engaging in humanitarian missions and the gross effect of it leaves a debilitating effect on the health of the national economy.”