Yobe killings: Atiku says FG focused on arresting protesters instead of tackling insecurity

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar says the federal government is more focused on arresting protesters than addressing the worsening insecurity in the country.

In a post on his X Page on Wednesday, Abubakar condemned the terrorist attack in Yobe state on Sunday.

On Sunday, Dungus Abdulkarim, Yobe police spokesperson, said suspected Boko Haram insurgents looted and set shops and houses on fire in Mafa village under Tarmuwa LGA.

Abdulkarim said the gunmen killed an “unspecified number of people and dropped some fliers with Arabic inscriptions”.

Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency publication focused on the Lake Chad region, also reported that the attack occurred during the Muslims’ Maghrib prayer when the gunmen shot sporadically into the gathering.

Makama said 34 worshippers were killed, adding that the gunmen also laid multiple explosives on the path to the village.

Meanwhile, Nigerians staged a 10-day nationwide #EndBadGovernance protest from August 1, demanding a reduction in governance costs, petrol subsidy reinstatement, food security, and fiscal discipline, among others.

The demonstration turned violent in some parts of the country and was characterised by looting and vandalism.

The police announced the arrest of the alleged perpetrators and secured an order to detain them for 60 days pending the conclusion of investigations.

One hundred and twenty-four protesters are in prison custody in the federal capital territory (FCT).

Ten of the 124 persons in custody took their plea on Monday before a federal high court in Abuja.

However, the former vice-president, while reacting to these developments, said the federal government has “preoccupied itself with stifling dissent and imposing death sentences on protesters”.

Abubakar said the “atrocity in Yobe is a stark testament to the failure of the current security framework, demanding immediate and comprehensive reform”.

“Despite the tragic bloodshed in Yobe, which has claimed scores of lives, and the rampant destruction across numerous villages in Katsina, Sokoto, and other towns within the North-West and North-Central regions, the government seems to remain detached, engrossed in inconsequential affairs,” Atiku wrote.

“The turmoil extends to the South as well, where the disquiet wrought by Boko Haram and the unsettling political discord threatens the nation’s peace.

“Amidst these grave challenges, the Federal Government preoccupies itself with stifling dissent, resorting to draconian measures such as imposing death sentences on protesters.

“The atrocity in Yobe is a stark testament to the failure of the current security framework, demanding immediate and comprehensive reform.

“My heart goes out to the victims of these horrific attacks, and I fervently implore the Tinubu administration to demonstrate a heightened commitment to safeguarding life and property across the nation.”