TheCable

Namadi Sambo, Nigeria’s vice-president, on Monday led a high-powered delegation to Kano state to commiserate with residents of the state over Friday’s tragic incident.

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents had invaded the Ado Bayero central mosque in the state capital during Juma’at service, killing more than 102 people and injuring many others.

Condemning the attack, Sambo dismissed the allegation that the federal government was using insurgency for political gains, saying though a Christian, President Goodluck Jonathan “loves and respects Muslims” and would not encourage any act capable of undermining their interest.

“I want to draw our attention to the fact that Muslims are in charge of the security of this country,” he said.

“Col. Sambo Dasuki, the national security adviser is a Muslim and from a royal house in Sokoto. General Aliyu Gusau, the minister of defence, is a Muslim and from Zamfara state. Suleiman Abba, the inspector-general of police is a Muslim from Jigawa state and myself as the vice-president, I am a Muslim from Kaduna state.

“Having these highly-placed people in his government is a clear indication that the president cannot be a party to this heinous act against Muslims or even Christians.”

Warning those who are of the view that the government was behind the insecurity in the country, Sambo charged Nigerians to live in unity.

“I also seize this opportunity to call on those who have been spreading the mischievous rumour that the government is involved in the situation,” he said.

“Politics should not be brought into this; government is not a party to this; the government is doing everything to ensure that normalcy is restored.

“I call on all Nigerians to be their brothers keeper, to be security-conscious and to continue to cooperate with the security agencies so that we would be able to achieve our noble objective of bringing back peace, tranquility and development to our dear country.”

On his part, Muhammad Sanusi II, the emir of Kano, called on the federal government to ensure that the perpetrators of the act do not go unpunished.

“The people of Kano have faith in Allah despite the calamity that befell them,” he said.

“Our believe is that a situation like Kano mosque attack requires thorough investigation, why it happened? Who are responsible? So that we can prevent a recurrence in the future.”

Rabiu Kwankwaso, the governor of the state, urged the federal government to boost security through adequate provisions for the military.