Niger Governor Decries Massacre in Mosque, Asks Villagers to Help Fish out Culprits

Laleye Dipo in Minna

The Niger State Governor, Mr. Abubakar Sani Bello, has decried the recent killings of 17 worshipers in a mosque in Baari village in the Mashegu Local Government Area of the state last week and therefore asked the people to collaborate with security agencies to facilitate the arrest of the perpetrators.

Last week 17 worshipers during the early morning muslim prayers were slaughtered in cold blood while eight others were seriously injured and rushed to the Kontagora General Hospital for treatment.

Governor Bello who visited the community on a fact finding mission on Monday, however, blamed the incident on bandits but said the people should fish out these perpetrators for the law to take its course.

“I have decided to come and see what has happened, get first-hand information so that we can plan how to stop such things from happening in the future” Bello said, adding that “it is unfortunate that people are being attacked while saying their prayers early in the morning.”

A statement on the visit made available to newsmen in Minna by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ms. Mary Noel Berje, yesterday also quoted Bello as charging members of the community to give peace a chance and also fish out people with questionable characters among them.

“I understand that it is the work of bandits probably with the connivance of some locals. So I call on the community members to pay attention to their neighbours and to be very observant about what is going on around them”

Bello further urged them to “workout modalities on how to fish out the bad eggs among them so as to assist the security agencies to curtail the situation” pointing out that “there cannot be a successful attack without an insider”

The governor, however, assured the people that government would not rest on it oars in evolving measures that would prevent reoccurrence, expressing optimism that the Commission of Inquiry he had earlier set up would do a thorough job of the exercise.

The Mashegu Local Government Council Chairman, Mr. Alhassan Isah Mazakuka informed the governor that 17 people were killed during the attack, eight injured while 19 others were kidnapped and taken into hiding while praying in the mosque last week.

Mazakuka said the where about of those kidnapped has not been known adding that some of those injured are now receiving treatments at the General Hospital Kontagora while some others were referred to Kebbi State for treatment.

It was the second of such attacks in the community within a period of 6 weeks.