Tambuwal, Bala Mohammed condole Zulum over Borno rice farmers’ massacre

Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State have condoled Borno State government and Governor Babangana Zulum over the killing over rice farmers by suspected Boko Haram members in Zabarmari area of Borno State.

Governor Tambuwal in a statement he personally signed, while condoling people of Borno State also commiserated with citizens of Sokoto State who were victims of the said attack.

According to the governor, “it is with deep shock and displeasure that the government and good people of Sokoto State receive the sad and upsetting news of Boko Haram attack on scores of rice farmers in a village near Maiduguri.

“We are deeply concerned and worried that an unspecified number of our enterprising citizens, who had travelled hundreds of kilometres to seek their means of livelihood in the areas where the attacks took place, were also affected.

“This act, at once abominable, disgusting and inhuman, is very disturbing,” he said.

Governor Tambuwal further assured that the state will collaborate with Borno State government to ascertain the number of affected victims from Sokoto.

“As we condoled the government and good people of Borno, with who we have consistently shared our sympathy and solidarity in weathering this horrendous trend of insecurity, we also commiserate with the families of the victims from our state.

“God-willing we will collaborate with the government of Borno to ascertain the number of our citizens affected with a view to identifying them. In the same vein, we will support the families of the victims.”

While praying to Allah to grant all of the victims eternal rest and their families the fortitude to bear this heart-wrenching loss, the governor also prays for God’s intercession in bringing this spate of insecurity in the country at large to an end.

Meanwhile, the Bauchi State government also described the killing as not only a blood-chilling barbarity and an affront to the government and people of Nigeria but also a challenge to national resolve and capacity to guarantee the safety of lives and property of both Nigerian citizens and residents.

The government also declared that the security challenges plaguing the entire country demand a complete overhaul of the national security architecture so that the gaps in intelligence gathering, human capacity and firepower, can be sufficiently ameliorated.

It stressed that “it is also with every sense of responsibility that we want to place on record our view on the security challenges that have defied all interventions.”

According to a press release by the Senior Special Assistant on Media to the governor, Mukhtar Gidado, the Bauchi State government stated that “more than ever before, the world is aghast at the sheer bestiality visited on these hapless citizens and the psyche of Nigerians; prompting the United Nations to issue a very emotional riposte, to the incident.

“Once again, the nation is united in grief as we mourn the macabre murder of many innocent Nigerians, by the Boko Haram insurgents. Though the victims lived in Zabarmari town, the attack, no doubt the most horrendous in recent times, was said to have taken place at Koshebe Village of Mafa Local Government Area, about 25 minutes drive from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

“We feel the pains of the inhabitants of this breadbasket that has been turned into a killing field. It is indeed a painful irony, that the farmers were slaughtered while engaging in the legitimate effort not only to feed their families but to contribute to national development. This indeed is one massacre too many.

“The spectacle of Governor Babagana Zulum at the funeral of the 43 recovered victims, as the awe-stricken people watched in anguish, is a constant reminder that eternal vigilance is the price we have to pay for our freedom.

“Our hearts go out to the traumatised families of the victims and the government and good people of Borno State. We also commiserate with the President and Commander-in-Chief who, despite all efforts so far, has had to carry the brunt of this senseless insurgency that has dislocated life in North-East Nigeria with a domino-like effect on the entire country,” the release further contained.

The government also stated that “as tempting, as it is, we believe that this is not a time for blame game or name-calling. Rather, the moment calls for sober reflection, for a closing of ranks by the political and military elite as well as other stakeholders, to work out a solution to this protracted destabilising insurgency.”

It concluded that “once again, on behalf of the government and people of Bauchi State, His Excellency, Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed condoles with His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Babagana Umara Zulum and the government and people of Borno State, particularly the Zabarmari constituency who lost loved ones in this show of shame.

“We pray for the peaceful repose of the souls of the victims of the ‘Zabarmari’ massacre and entrust members of the bereaved families, to God’s protection and succour.”

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