by Isi Esene

The director of design and construction in the Borno State Ministry of Water Resources, Mallam Ali Mohammed Sheriff was yesterday shot and killed by unidentified gunmen in Maiduguri, the state capital.

Sheriff was said to have been shot in front of his house around Mafoni ward as he was preparing to go to work.

The spokesperson of the Joint Military Task Force, Lt.-Col. Musa Sagir had last week revealed that government officials are now the target of suspected terrorists.

A close friend of the Sheriff family spoke with reporters on the condition of anonymity saying, “I am very disturbed with the security challenges facing our dear state. As I am talking to you, we are coming from Gwange Cemetery where we went to bury the remains of our lovely and humble colleague, which we miss dearly.

“I pray that God Almighty will grant the soul of the deceased eternal rest,” he said.

This killing is coming barely 24 hours after a deputy director in the Ministry of Land and Survey, Mallam Yerima, and another lecturer with the Department of Geography, University of Maiduguri, Babagana Kolo were trailed to their houses and shot dead in Maiduguri metropolis.