THE WORST BOMB BLAST IN NIGERIA SINCE BUHARI BECAME PRESIDENT

It has been reckoned by many Nigerians as the worst bomb blast incident ever since the no-nonsense Nigerian president came to power. Although there have been pockets of peace and security breach, the coordinated bomb attacks on Sunday 20th September 2015 by the insurgent boko haram extremists in Maiduguri, Northeast Nigeria, left too many questions still lingering in the mind of Nigerians and indeed the world. According to the Indian Express online, it was reported that over 100 people lost their lives in the coordinated bomb blasts.

 

The four blasts which rocked Maiduguri instantly claimed about 80 lives while 28 bodies were brought to the morgue following a suicide bomb attack Monday night at Monguno Market. The Indian Express online news portal reported that the Monguno market is barely 83 miles from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.

 

In response to the casualty reports of this deadly bomb blast in Maiduguri, the Nigerian police maintained that the total fatality was around 70 and about 97 people were injured. According to the Indian Express, it was believed that most of the dead were buried immediately by their relatives in accordance to Islamic custom which is why, the real number of the dead could not be ascertained by the police authorities.

City of Maidugri, Northeast Nigeria (Source: Google Maps)

 

According to records, this is the worst act of terror by the mindless insurgent book haram ever since President Buhari assumed office in May 29. Let us recall that the Nigerian armed forces have been given a 3-month ultimatum to end insurgency and other forms of insecurity in the Northeast. This ultimatum culminates in December this year. Fortunately, the Nigerian military has been recording huge successes lately in their fight against insurgency in the northeast. But with the development so far, it is quite clear that insecurity and terrorism has no face hence, could take much more than military warfare to be stopped.

 

These societal miscreants could still operate as tiny invisible cells even after being physically dislodged from all their known camps within the country. This is an indication that the military, all other security agencies and indeed all Nigerians need to work in synergy to eradicate extremist beliefs, which is the basis for becoming a successful suicide bomber.

 

In compliments to the military's onslaught against terrorism and insurgency, religious leaders and social workers should use preaching and propaganda to stem the tide of acceptance of wrong religious beliefs by young minds. Insecurity is the product of misconception of acceptable social norms and beliefs which makes people indulge in socially-unacceptable activities. If Nigerians could all have access to the right religious sermons and advice, wrong beliefs would cease and extremism would die a natural death.

 

Few days ago, the world media reported that a good number of Islamic state ISIS defectors went public to denounce their membership and sought to return to their countries. This is happening because they have seen the true picture of what extremism is all about. Somewhat also, they would have had access to correct admonitions which made them have a change of heart. The world expresses hope that by their testimonies, many more extremists and intending extremists would come to have a rethink.