Kaduna blast: We suspect foul play against Buhari –ACF
By Ajibola Abayomi, Temidayo Akinsuyi, Lagos and Hassan Zaggi, Abuja
Te scene Kaduna’s bomb blast
The spokesman of the forum, Muhammadu Ibrahim, in an exclusive interview with our correspondent said: “The incident was unusual and we have every reason to believe that it was targeted at General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd).
“It was not the usual attack we have been witnessing. The incident appeared to have been perfected, but we condemn it totally.”
Buhari, a former head of state, narrowly escaped death in the explosion that left 80 people dead and several others injured.
According to the ACF imagemaker “We learnt with shock and disbelief the twin bomb blasts that occurred in Kaduna town at Alkali Road and Kawo on Wednesday, July 23, which killed many innocent people and injured some. The bomb blast at Alkali Road was caused by a suicide bomber and targeted at the convoy of Islamic cleric, Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi, who had concluded this year’s Tafsir at Murtala Muhammed Square, Kaduna, with prayers for peace and harmony to reign in Nigeria while the one at Kawo was targeted at the convoy of the former Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari, who was being trailed by the bombers.
“Although both Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi escaped unhurt, this unfortunate incident is worrisome, considering the personalities targeted.
“ACF, therefore, condemns in strong term the senseless and inhuman act of terrorism being perpetrated by insurgents and their collaborators against the Nigerian people, especially the Kaduna twin bomb blasts targeted at Gen. Buhari and Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi, in which innocent people pursuing their legitimate means of livelihood were victims.
“ACF also calls on the government to thoroughly investigate the motive of the perpetrators of this heinous crime against the two prominent Northern leaders.”
Also, former Minister of Transport, Ebenezer Babatope, has condemned the attack.
In a statement made available to Saturday Independent, Babatope, a member of the Board of Trustees (BoT), of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said those behind acts of insurgency in the country will be exposed and vanquished “very soon.”
Similarly, the National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Yinka Odumakin, in his reaction, said Buhari’s death would have plunged the nation into another civil war had the terrorists succeeded in their mission.
While of the view that some undesirable elements may have capitalised on the recent face-off between Buhari and President Goodluck Jonathan to carry out the act so as to give the impression that the Presidency was behind it, Odumakin called on the security agencies to fish out those behind the attacks.
“The incident in Kaduna was very unfortunate, especially the attack on General Muhammadu Buhari. God saved this nation that nothing happened to him because by now this country would have been in flames.
“For a man of that standing, with that passionate number of followers, only God knows what could have happen to this country if harm had come to him. And I think it is important for the security forces to get to the root of this because it may just be some people who wanted a civil war in this country that wanted to kill him.
The Defence Headquarters on Friday said that troops in Kaduna had arrested a man suspected to be connected with the explosion targeted at Gen. Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday.
This information is contained in a statement posted on Defence Headquarters website, defenceinfo.mil.ng, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
The statement said the young man was arrested by a military patrol team, which stormed the area immediately after the explosion.
It said the man disguised as a woman clad in female dress and putting on a brazier.
“The suspect was arrested while trying to fizzle into a crowd of onlookers when the patrol team arrived the scene.
“Youths in the area attempted to mob him while he was being arrested but were restrained by the troops who quickly whisked him away in an armoured personnel carrier,” the statement explained.
The statement said the man was currently being interrogated by security agencies in a bid to ascertain his links.
It would be recalled that there were twin bomb explosions in Kaduna metropolis on July 23.
In a related development, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar, has constituted a high-powered investigation team to unmask those behind the blasts.
The investigation team made up of seasoned investigators are saddled with the responsibility to unearth the perpetrators of the bomb attack.
The team of investigators, which will work in collaboration with other security agencies, is headed by the Commissioner of Police in charge of Legal Department, DCP Nwodibo Ekechukwu.
Other members of the team are DCP Chris Ezike of the Federal SARS, DCP Dan Mallam of the Monitoring Unit, DCP Adeyemi Ogunjemilusi of the Interpol Unit and others.
Meanwhile, on the orders of the IGP, security has been beefed up in all states of the federation, particularly in the states perceived to be vulnerable to terror attacks.
While appealing to all Nigerians, particularly Kaduna residents to remain calm, the IGP calls on the citizens to cooperate with security agencies by giving them relevant information to fight the crime.
However, Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Prof. Rufai Ahmed Alkali, expressed sadness over the trading of blames by politicians over the incident.
Speaking during his visit to the secretariat of Goodluck Support Group (GSG), Prof. Alkali said Nigerians must work collectively to tackle security challenges in the country.
While commiserating with the victims of the attacks by the Boko Haram insurgents in the country, Alkali denied the allegation by some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) linking the attack on Buhari and Sheik Bauchi to the Presidency.
“I want to express my sincere concern over what happened to our former Head of state, General Muhammadu Buhari. You all recall two or three days ago, there was an attempted attack on his life and another senior citizen, Sheik Dahiru Bauchi, both in Kaduna.
“It is by the grace of God that today the lives of these two senior citizens were spared. We want to thank God for saving them and for saving this country from the trauma of what could have happened if the people behind it had achieved their objective.
“I want to also state that in seasons like these the usual thing is what has become the popular culture of blame game. I don’t think anybody in this country would be associated with this thing in any way or form. Therefore, those who want to trivialise these issues, personalise them or attribute them to this government or the leadership of this government in any form, directly or indirectly, should desist from it.
“This government is committed to the security of this nation, it is committed to lasting peace in this country and Mr. President is deeply committed to bringing stability to our political environment.
“We should not over dramatise these issues. All of us must come together, we have a collective responsibility to protect and defend our country. This is not a time to politicise issues. Security matters are not for politicians.
“There are people who have been trained and who are responsible for security. We cannot do their job for them; they should be allowed to do their job.
“We should also desist from any act that will weaken the institutions of government, especially security agencies who are doing very well in containing the situation,” he said.
Prof Alkali, who formally took over on Friday, as the national coordinator of Goodluck Support Group, added that President Goodluck Jonathan would build on the positive gains of the reform of the electoral process in 2015.
“Only yesterday at a breakfast dinner for ambassadors and senior citizens Mr. President assured the international community and Nigerians as a whole that the 2015 election would be free and fair,” he said.
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