Terror Strikes UNIMAID, Suicide Bomber Kills Prof., Four Others

Abuja – A professor and four other persons were killed on Monday when a male suicide bomber detonated a bomb at the Senior Staff Quarters of the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), Borno State.

The killed don was identified as Prof. Aliyu Usman Mani, Director of Veterinary of the University, according to Alhaji Satomi Ahmed, the chairman of State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).

Damian Chukwu, Commissioner of Police (CP), confirmed the incident to newsmen in Maiduguri.

Chukwu said that 15 persons, who sustained various degrees of injuries, were rushed to the hospital.

“At about 5:45a.m a mobile police officer who is on duty sighted a suicide bomber who was trying to scale the fence at Gate Five of the university.

“Suspicious of his movement, the mobile police officer instantly gunned him down and his bomb exploded and killed him instantly.

“The second suicide bomber, a seven-year-old detonated the second explosive at the senior staff quarters mosque in the university where a professor, and four persons were killed and 15 persons sustained various degrees of injuries and were rushed to the hospital,” said Chukwu.

Alhaji Satomi Ahmed, chairman State Emergency Management Agency, said, “All I can say is to appeal to the people to be vigilant and ensure proper watch because, like we have said, the insurgents are in disarray and employing any tactic to cause havoc.

“The people must be vigilant at all time,” said Satomi.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has expressed shock over the early morning bomb blast at the University of Maiduguri mosque.

The union had suspended a press conference it had planned to hold after the meeting of its National Executive Council in Kano as a result of the incident.

Prof Abiodun Ogunyemi, ASUU National President, announced the suspension of the news conference in Kano on Monday.

He said that following the bomb blast, the executive council of the union had no alternative than to suspend the conference until it gets the details of what happened.

“We don’t have the state of mind to do what we want to do today.

“We are upset with the unfortunate development in Maiduguri.

“We learnt that four people including a professor lost their lives while six others sustained injuries,” Ogunyemi said.

The ASUU National Executive members had been in Kano for the past four days to discuss issues about Nigerian universities.

The ASUU president was expected to address a conference on the outcome of the meeting of the National Executive Council when he received the news of the unfortunate incident in Maiduguri.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has condemned the Monday morning terrorist attack at the mosque in the University of Maiduguri.

In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, in Abuja, the president expressed sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the university community and families of the victims.

The president also condoled with the government and people of Borno over the unfortunate incident.

According to him, the appalling attack on a revered place of worship and ivory tower shows that the perpetrators have no true understanding of Islam.

He noted that the “despicable acts of terrorism are cowardly, criminal, unjustifiable and punishable before God almighty and the laws of the land’’.

The president reassured communities in Borno and others in the North Eastern part of the country that his administration would continue to ensure that terrorism never triumphed over peace-loving Nigerians.

He reaffirmed the need for Nigerians to remain more vigilant even as the security agencies continued to use all means at their disposal to combat the remaining   insurgents and their sponsors.

Buhari wished those injured in the attack a speedy and full recovery, and comfort for families of the dead.

Prof. Abubakar  Njodi, Vice Chancellor, University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), says the university will not close in spite the  bomb blast by Boko Haram insurgents.

Njodi spoke on Monday in Maiduguri, when Maj.-Gen. Lucky Irabor, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole of the Nigerian Army, paid him a sympathy visit.

“I can convince the Senate, the management and the university community to close the school to save lives.

“But if we do that, we are not helping because we have to give the security our maximum support and our support is not to join them in the battle field.

“If we run away, that means there is nobody they should be fighting for. We should stay and resolve it, after all the war is about us, western education.

“If we stay, the terrorists will be frustrated because that is their aim.

“What is the point of fighting for us if we run? We should stand our ground so that the military will be proud that the people they are fighting for are on ground.

“Therefore, our decision is not to close the university. We want to assure you our theatre commander, the university remains open and we will continue with our examinations tomorrow.

“We suspended the exams for today because we want the military to come and access what happened,” Njodi said.

He, however, appealed to the military to beef up security in the outskirts of the university to forestall future occurrence.

Earlier, Maj.-Gen. Irabor, the Theatre Commander, said he came to the sympathise with the UNIMAID community on the loss of lives of Prof. Aliyu Mani and others who died as a result of the suicide bomb attack.

Irabor said: “As we have already said and will continue to say that there is frustration in the Boko Haram camp.

“They have tried severally to bring sorrows and pain to the university and the rest of the communities and have failed.

“We, therefore, enjoin you not to be deterred. This is a clear sign that the end of Boko Haram has come.

“The people should, therefore, continue with their normal life to let the Boko Haram know they have failed.

“We should let them know that the extent of their stupidity and callousness do not have any impact on us anymore,” Irabor said.