Tobias Sylvester
The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) has condemed the gruesome murder of over 40 rice farmers by suspected Boko Haram terrorists in Garin Kwashebe in Jere Local Government Area of Borno State.
KanyiDaily had reported how Boko Haram terrorists beheaded 43 rice farmers on Saturday in Zabarmari, less than 20 km from Maiduguri, where Nigerian Army has used as headquarters in the ongoing war against insurgency.
Reacting in a statement issued on Sunday by NGF Chairman and Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, the governors described the killings as obnoxious, wicked, unwarranted, and morally reprehensible.
They said the latest killings also raised serious questions about the capability of security agents to adequately protect lives and property in the country.
“The killing of over 40 rice farmers in Garin Kwashebe in Jere Local Government Area of Borno State on Saturday, November 28, 2020, by suspected Boko Haram terrorists brings back ugly memories of several dastardly attacks on soft targets in the state.
“The farmers were attacked while harvesting their produce totally oblivious of the danger that awaits them in nearby bushes. This method is consistent with the senseless bombings of busy markets, bus stations, schools and abattoirs whenever the terrorists feel overpowered by the security operatives or feel their backs against the wall.
“Governors, under the platform of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum view this attack, like many before it, as obnoxious, wicked, unwarranted, and morally reprehensible.
“This sad narrative raises serious questions on the general security situation in the country and around the capability of the nation’s security architecture. It also raises questions on whether or not there are adequate arrangements to protect lives and property.
“Since insurgency engulfed the country more than a decade ago, each time it seems like the situation is coming under control, the enemy strikes again. This has happened consistently.
“Governors are concerned that the carnage is degenerating beyond explicable limits, yet again, and the catalogue of destruction is not only seeming to be endless and intractable but it has an adverse effect on everything in the state and the country at large,” the statement reads.
Saturday’s killings is coming weeks after 11 men were killed by Boko Haram insurgents who also kidnapped 9 women at Takulashe village of Chibok Local Government Area of Borno State.
