By Saidu Idris
365Daily – The Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) has donated the sum of N50 million to the government of Kaduna State for the victims of the recent Abuja – Kaduna train attack.
The forum said this in a statement issued by the head of its Media and Public Affairs, Mr Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, in Abuja on Friday, April 15, 2022.
He said the donation which was made on Friday was presented by the forum’s Chairman and Governor of Ekiti, Dr Kayode Fayemi, who led a two-man delegation to Kaduna State.
The delegation commiserated with the government and people of the state on the train attack which claimed lives, injured many people, with many others who were kidnapped still in captivity.
The NGF chairman described the attack as “mind-boggling,” because of the number of casualties and other fatalities, adding, ”Regrettably, the criminals were audacious enough to also take away some hostages which raised the state of insecurity, which has virtually thrown Kaduna in the mix.”
He further said, ”Everything is currently unnecessarily revolving around 2023,” advising that, more should be done towards securing the country” and restoring the North-West region which had been a region of calm and consensus before now to its former state.
“Whatever it is, Governors would continue to work with President Muhammadu Buhari to bring sanity back to the country,” he assured.
Fayemi disclosed that he shares the same view with the Kaduna Governor that the Federal Government should attack the terrorists in their enclaves to decimate them.
“I agree that we as governors must join hands with the President to deal ruthlessly with the bandits, that they be crushed, as you have always advocated,” he stated.
El-Rufai, in his remarks disclosed that 61 Kaduna indigenes were still recuperating from the train attack, including a top government official and his 8-months pregnant wife.
He said that the bandits were currently hiding somewhere in Niger State.
El-Rufai regretted that the attack was avoidable, because “the state government had tipped the Nigerian Railway Corporation.”
Speaking earlier, the Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, described the train attack as “a demoralising experience,” which she prayed the state never witnesses again.
Balarebe said that El-Rufai had been in the forefront of finding solutions to the problem from the beginning.
The Deputy Governor said the NGF and its members had been such good friends whose support the state valued and placed on high premium.
She pledged that the Kaduna State Government would continue to do its best in supporting the security forces in the state.
”This is to accomplish the task of securing lives and property while still working hard to find lasting solutions to the problem, in such a way that it never repeats itself,” she said.