…ASSURES FAMILIES, VICTIMS WILL BE RELEASED
The Federal Government on Wednesday said there is collaboration between Boko Haram and bandits in the recent Abuja-Kaduna train attack.
According to the FG, the security agencies are doing everything necessary to unravel the group behind the attack.
Minister of Defense, Major General Bashir Magashi (retd) and his Information and Culture counterpart, Lai Mohammed, stated this while responding to questions from State House Correspondents at the end of the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja.
Mohammed who said the Government is on top of the matter stressed that preliminary report shows that the terrorist groups were collaborating to unleash attacks on Nigerians.
He appealed to Nigerians to also collaborate with Government in the fight against territorism.
“Honestly, I think the security chiefs are working hard to unveil those that are involved, and we will tell you very soon those that are carrying out these attacks.
“Both attacks in Jos and Kaduna, we will come and explain to the public what is really going on and our efforts to ensure that all these activities are stopped once and for all. We are really on top of the situation, we are planning hard and we will get it out as soon as possible.
“What is happening now is that there is a kind of an unholy handshake between bandits and Boko Haram insurgents.
“Preliminary reports of what transpired at the Kaduna train attacks show that there is a kind of collaboration between the bandits and the dislodged Boko Haram terrorists from the northeast.” He stated.
Earlier during the attack, Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, blamed the attack on collaboration between Boko Haram terrorists and bandits operating in Kaduna, Zamfara, Sokoto Niger, and Kebbi States.
On the issue of 72 hours ultimatum by families of victims on train attack to secure their release or they take their fate in their hands, Lai Mohammed said what the Goverment is doing to rescue the victims was not a media affairs that should be discussed in the press.
“I think the Honorable Minister of Defense has already addressed the issues. One, that what the federal government is doing won’t be subject matter of a Press Conference, because we have lives at stake.
“And that the various arms of security are working night and day to unravel the mystery surrounding the attack as a whole. On the kidnapped people, what I can assure you is that the respective arms of Government actually engaged as we speak, are working to get those victims released.
“It’s natural for anybody who is a father or a mother of a kidnapped person to be worried and to be concerned. But at the level of Government, we appreciate that and we are leaving no stone unturned.
“But that we’ll give you specific steps we’re taking and I think it will be counter productive and not going to aid or help those who are kidnapped or help the security forces who are tracing and ensuring that there’ll be no repeat of such attacks.“
