President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Monday warned the military that accidental bombing of civilians must never happen again.
He was reacting again to the bombing of Tudun Biri, Kaduna State, by the army, which left over 100 Maulud celebrants dead and many others injured.
The president gave the warning in Maiduguri on Monday while declaring open the Chief of Army Staff Annual Conference 2023.
He further directed relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate the incident and take appropriate action so that it would not reoccur.
“This was a compound tragedy as a nation, we weep over the tragic loss of precious men, women and children; for those of us entrusted with the nation’s security, it is severely painful to see harm befalling those whom we are sworn in to protect.
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“Such incident must be thoroughly investigated and future occurrence must be prevented.
“I wish we can somehow take this all back and erase the harm done, but we cannot, it has happened. But what we can do is to give ourselves victory over the terrorists,” the president said.
He said victory against the enemies of the nation, the return of peace, economic development and prosperity for all Nigerians remained the best yardsticks to honour the deceased and not monetary compensation alone.
Tinubu also asked the military to desist from retaliatory assault on sister agencies.
A clash between the army and the police had last month led to the killing of an inspector at the Adamawa State Police Command.
“To you military leaders, you have a responsibility to demonstrate great character in uniform. Therefore, what happened in Adamawa State is unacceptable. You have point of reports. But to launch a destructive retaliation against police is not acceptable to any of us, the leaders, please, let it end,” he said.
Earlier, Tinubu, while speaking at the palace of the Shehu of Borno, Alhaji Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai Al-Amin El-Kanemi, expressed his condolences once again to the families of the victims of the accidental bombing in Kaduna.
“They (the victims) were Nigerians of profound faith and in the moment of the tragedy, they were reciting the Shadada. God Almighty comforts their families as their nation grieves their passage into glory. May their souls rest in eternal peace,” he prayed.
The president acknowledged the sacrifices and commitment of the army and other security apparatus in ending terrorism, banditry and other criminalities.
He expressed belief that the conference would provide constructive platform to draw strategies and policies to protect and safeguard Nigeria from internal or external forces detrimental to the nation’s progress, peace and unity.
“All those who attempt to break our society will not succeed because the procurement of new fighter jets, military equipment and other support is a testament of our resolve to end insecurity, and Nigeria under my leadership will continue to give its maximum support in these regards,” Tinubu said. He said his administration would continue to do all within its powers to provide support and care to the families of all Nigerians affected by the remnants of insecurity in parts of Borno State.
“This is my most sacred responsibility and the trajectory of the larger effort shown by the ratio of victory over defeat has been sliding well in our favour since the new administration has resumed office. We are not satisfied yet. We are not satisfied until we reach the end of insecurity in Nigeria,” he said. He stressed that under his watch, security issues would remain a top priority, but not limited only to battlefield concerns.
“We’ll provide better amenities and benefits to our gallant armed forces and their families. We are committed to this and this is factored into the 2024 budget. We’ll ensure that our administration reflects the grateful heart of the Nigerian people in the way we treat those who make the ultimate sacrifices on our behalf,” he assured.
In his remarks, Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum appealed to Tinubu to construct more roads in the state that would give the military access to ending insurgency in the state considering the vastness of the region.
“It’s necessary to put an important request to Mr President to establish military bases in Sambisa Madara mounting and the shores of Lake Chad in order to secure these areas and clear them once and for all from the remnants of Boko Haram insurgents.
“I’m deeply passionate about the Borno restoration plan, and the unwavering confidence of President Tinubu’s commitment to elevate Nigeria to a greater height,” he added.
In his welcome address, the COAS, Lt. Gen Lagbaja requested a minute of silence in respect of the souls of the victims of Tudun Biri village bomb mishap and prayed to God to grant them eternal peace.
He thanked Tinubu for honoring the invitation, saying the conference offered the army an avenue to take stock, evaluate and comprehensively review its ongoing operational engagements in all theatres of operations across the six geo-political zones within the year.
“This will provide the NA an in-depth insight to make far-reaching decisions that will be result-oriented towards achieving its set objective of addressing multifaceted security challenges in the country,” he said.
The Shehu of Borno urged Tinubu to deliver infrastructural interventions to areas hard hit by insurgency over the years.
“We seek the revival of the Lake Chad Commission to provide succor to the large communities in the Lake Chad’s surrounding areas. We seek power projects and job creation initiatives for our unemployed youths. Governor Zulum has been performing beyond what is humanly possible but his resources are limited. Please, assist him,” he appealed.
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