‘Disheartening’ — Arewa forum condemns Borno suicide bomb attacks

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has condemned the suicide bomb attacks on the Marrarraban Gwoza community in Borno.

On Saturday, several people were killed after two suspected suicide bombers attacked some wedding guests and mourners in the community.

In a statement on Monday, Tukur Muhammad-Baba, the forum’s spokesperson, described the attack as a “disheartening one, happening at a time when the community was beginning to live a relatively terror-free life”.

He urged the federal government to ensure that normalcy is restored to the state and perpetrators are brought to justice.

“The sordid events led to the deaths of at least 19 persons, including women and children (perhaps still counting), with scores of people wounded,” the statement reads.

“Although no persons or groups have claimed responsibility for the cowardly attacks, they had all the tale tell hallmarks of the well-known terror strategies of Boko Haram religious extremist insurgents.

“ACF observes that the attacks were specifically targeted, for maximum impact, at a wedding party, a funeral, and a hospital, all soft and defenceless targets, as undertaken by brainwashed female agents.

“Although degraded by battles with security agents, Boko Haram insurgents still retain a modicum of capability and capacity to wreck misery on hapless communities on account of a misguided religious ideology.

“Very worrisome and disheartening that such attacks would occur when the community has begun to look forward to relatively terror-free lives away from the criminality-infested existence of the last few years.

“No efforts should be spared to ensure a speedy return to normalcy for the people of Borno and indeed all communities across the nation under siege by extremists, insurgents, terrorists, and bandits.”