Buhari: Evil Confronting My Administration Requires Support, Involvement of All Nigerians

•Tambuwal confirms bandits’ attack killed 23 in Gidan Bawa

•Senate mourns travelers burnt to death

Deji Elumoye in Abuja and Onuminya Innocent in Sokoto

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said he needed the support of all Nigerians to be able to tackle the evil that currently confronts his six-year-old administration.

The president said this while reacting to the news of bandits’ attack in Sokoto, which resulted in the death of 23 people and expressed sadness over the development.

Buhari, in a release by his Media Adviser, Femi Adesina, said he was very distressed at the manner of death visited on these hapless citizens, who were undertaking a legitimate journey to another part of the country.

“It shows that the evil this administration is confronting is one that requires the support and involvement of all Nigerians. I extend deep condolences to the families of the victims as I assure that the security agencies will continue to give their all to bring to an end the operations of these despicable people.”

However, the Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, has confirmed that bandits indeed attacked a 42-seater bus traveling to Kaduna from the state on Monday and killed of 23 of the commuters.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on media and publicity, Muhammad Bello, quoted the governor as saying contrary to speculations that over 40 people lost their lives in the attack, 23 people lost their lives in the attack which held at Gidan Bawa village, Isa Local Government Area of the state.

According to the statement by Tambuwal, security chiefs in the state, comprising heads of the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Air Force, the Nigerian Police, Department of State Security and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps as well as the Chairmen of Isa and Sabon Birni local government areas had briefed the governor on the incident at the Government House, Sokoto, pledging to work with him on modalities to checkmate future occurrences.

“Strategies are on to make sure that this will not happen again,” said the state Commissioner of Police, Kamaldeen Okunola, who briefed journalists after a closed session with the governor.

He explained that of the total number of people in the bus, which the bandits shot at causing a conflagration, 23 died of fire burns while six sustained minor injuries and were receiving treatment at a hospital.

Three of the victims whose injuries were not so serious were promptly treated and discharged, Okunola said, after the security agencies mobilised to the spot of the attack and immediately mounted a patrol on the 30 kilometers stretch of road between Gidan Bawa, the attack spot in Sokoto state and Shinkafi town in Zamfara State.

Meanwhile, the Senate too has mourned the deaths of unfortunate travelers burnt by the criminals.

Coming under order 43 of the Senate rules, Senator Ibrahim Gobir (Sokoto East), drew the attention of his colleagues to the gruesome murder of the travelers and lamented the spate of killings, which, he warned were alarming and on the increase.

He called on the military and security agencies to immediately intervene by deploying personnel to secure the lives of residents in states affected by the activities of bandits.

The Senate, thereafter, observed a minute silence to mourn the victims of Monday’s attack by bandits.