Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has described the attack on Christian worshippers as an “unfortunate” and “sad” incident.

The governor, who cut short an official trip to Abuja to visit the scene of the incident, lamented the attacks at a time peace was gradually returning to the state capital following sporadic attacks by suspected militia men.

Kwankwaso promised that the state and Federal governments would continue to work hard to ensure that peace and harmony prevail among residents.

He said the state government had made arrangements with public and private hospitals to ensure that victims are treated satisfactorily. The government will foot the medical bills.

Kwankwaso, who lamented the loss of lives and property, commiserated with the university authorities and its community.

The Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Yahuza Bello, who conducted the governor round the affected areas, explained that some of the worshippers were attacked in an indoor sports hall at the old campus of the university, which is used temporarily as a place of worship.

Yahuza added that the second group of worshippers was attacked while conducting the Sunday service in an open space outside the Dandatti Abdulkadir Theatre, which they hitherto used, but which is undergoing renovation. He said those injured were receiving treatment in hospitals in Kano city.

The Coordinator, Patriotic Alliance of Nigeria (PAN), Chief Maxi Okwu, advised the Federal Government not to negotiate with the Boko Haram sect but deal decisively with the group.

Okwu spoke in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) while reacting to yesterday’s bomb attack in Kano.

“Globally, nations no longer negotiate with terrorists. The hammer must fall heavily on the sect and especially their political sponsors whose sole aim is to destabilise the nation.

“These bomb attacks have gone out of hand and the sect has continued to thrive because of their sponsors,” Okwu said.

Mr Tony Uranta, the Executive Secretary of the United Niger Delta Energy Development Security Strategy (UNDEDSS), said that the Federal Government should abandon any planned negotiations with the sect.

“There is no justification for the existence of the Boko Haram sect. Enough is enough as Nigeria belongs to all,” he said.

The President of Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Alhaji Yerima Shetima, said “the perpetrators and their sponsors must be traced and brought to book”.

University of Jos (UNIJOS) students decried the attack, calling on the government and other stakeholders to stop “lip service” to incessant killings of youths.

One of the students, Esther Adebayo, a part-three Pharmacy student, who was in tears, said she felt really bad when she heard the news as she just returned from a fellowship.

She said: “It could be any one of us. We went to fellowship today and I am wondering what our leaders are doing to protect the lives of the innocent, especially the youths who are just in school to make something good of their lives in the future.”

Another student, who did not want his name mentioned, said: “It is as if these people just want to put fear in the lives of Christians so that they would not worship God in the churches.

“Our government should take a decisive step to end this thing before it becomes a full blown religious war. What will happen if Christian youths start attacking people in the mosque, then everyone will see the perpetrators of this evil as the victims, not the aggressors.”

Rev. Gideon Para-Mallam, who works with students, said: “The religious undertone of today’s attacks cannot be denied and it stands condemned by peace loving Nigerians. Targeting innocent Christian worshippers consisting of university workers, teachers and students in the Catholic and Protestant places of worship on campus is unacceptable.

“Condoning and allowing ourselves to be intimidated by the present violence is mortgaging our future. The students of today are the future leaders of the nation tomorrow. I appeal to all conscionable Nigerians to rise and act to safeguard the future: our students.”

The latest dimension to the Boko Haram bombings is a dangerous trend that should be nipped in the bud immediately, Senator Babafemi Ojudu said yesterday.

The Senator said: “A situation where the sect has to take their grievances to schools is unacceptable and capable of turning educational institutions into places of fear.”

Ojudu said although Boko Haram claims to be against western education, it is against the tenets of free conscience to scare those who believe in western education away from their schools.

He commiserated with the families of the victims of the bombing.

He added that Nigerians desire definitive action and not profuse condolences that have over time outlived their meaning.

The Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Service and Establishment said this was not a time for President Goodluck Jonathan and the National Security Adviser (NSA), Azazi, to be second-guessing each other but to pool their resources together and stop Boko Haram, which roots they have always claimed to know.

Ojudu said he believed that Jonathan should do everything within his power, while drawing suggestions from all stakeholders, to ensure that his reign is not remembered for needless loss of Nigerian lives.

The Senator also condoled with the management of “This Day” newspaper on the bombing of its offices in Kaduna and Abuja, urging them never to allow anything silence their pen. He advised security agencies to ensure that media houses are well-protected from the onslaught of Boko Haram.

He added that in a country like Nigeria where journalists are not well-treated, Boko Haram should not be allowed to add to their misery.

http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/news/44911-governor-senator-students-others-condemn-attack.html