The victims of the Kaduna-Abuja train attack weren’t the first, and sadly won’t be the last from the look of things. Nigerians aren’t safe, anyone can be the next victim regardless of social status. RIP to all who died…
Daniel Regha
We can only imagine how many people have died from insecurity in 2022 alone. Media platforms will give you the numbers, but there are indications that the stories are usually under-reported.
Kaduna has been the focus of insecurity in Nigeria, and Monday’s night train attack is just one report.
According to Vanguard newspaper, A survivor of Monday night’s bomb attack on a Kaduna train has described his experience, saying when the explosives went, the earth shook after which the terrorists began to rain bullets on them.
He recalled that “the earth shook and within the twinkle of an eye, it was gunshots everywhere.”
According to him, the passengers on the train who were about almost a thousand, fell on each other when the train derailed.
“The terrorists surrounded the coaches and shot sporadically.
“Many were wounded. Some were hit by bullets as the terrorists closed in, trying to infiltrate the coaches.
“As the confusion heightened, many ran into the bushes on both sides of the track. It was by the will of Allah that I survived,” he said.
One of the passengers on the train told Channels Television that the bandits bombed the train track with an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) which forced the train to derail.
The train conveying over 970 passengers was reportedly attacked by suspected terrorists between Rijana and Katari in Kaduna.
Nigerians posted on social media while the attack happened:
Dr Megafu Chinelo wrote: “I’m on the train. I have been shot please pray for me.”
Dr Chinelo has been reported dead.
@FakhuusHashim wrote: “They came with bare cars and loaded people from the train carriages and kidnapped many. Now, if you can’t find your loved one wounded in a hospital currently or dead in a mortuary, then they’ve been kidnapped.”
NRC confirmed the attack
The Managing Director of Nigerian Railways Corporation, NRC, Fidet Okhiria, said, “We cannot give you much information now. Most of the passengers have gone into hiding and they cannot be giving information, but there are reports of gunshots as the train stopped.”
The NRC has suspended its Abuja-Kaduna train service.
The NRC wrote on Tuesday, “Dear passengers, due to unforeseen circumstances, train operations along the Abuja-Kaduna route has been temporarily suspended.
“Further communication would be given in due course.”
Security Chief visits the scene
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya visited the scene of the Abuja-Kaduna train attack
The COAS was accompanied by some principal staff officers of the Army Headquarters and the General Officer Commanding 1 Division, on arrival at the scene.
The COAS assessed the security situation around the general area of the attack and inspected the attacked train, as well as the rail track to evaluate the degree of damage.
The COAS however, ordered the troops of the Nigerian Army and other security agencies to intensify their search and rescue operations to ensure that the kidnapped victims are rescued unconditionally.
The Presidency
The President, Muhammadu Buhari Tuesday in Abuja, expressed his regime’s commitment to an efficient tax administration in order to improve tax revenue in the country, saying nothing about the terrorist attack on the Abuja-Kaduna train, where it has been confirmed that Nigerians lost their lives and others have been kidnapped.
However, the Presidential spokesperson, Bashir Ahmad, says Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, has visited “Kaduna this afternoon to receive first-hand information and sympathize with the people and Government of the State over yesterday’s unfortunate attacks on Kaduna-Abuja train.”
Also, “Service Chiefs have briefed President Buhari on last night’s attacks on Kaduna-Abuja train. Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff and IG of Police all visited the scenes of the attacks earlier today, as all security agencies activated their rescue operations.”
From Lai Mohammed
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed had said before the attack was first reported that Nigeria is becoming a safer place with each passing day.
The minister, who spoke in Abuja, on Monday, March 28, said this is as a result of the string of successes being recorded in the fight against Boko Haram, ISWAP, bandits and other criminal elements.
“I am proud of our security forces, our men and women in uniform. Despite a myriad of security challenges, they are living up to the billing.
“As the terrorists and their camps are being decimated, thousands of terrorists and their families are surrendering in droves. The effectiveness of the security forces has been enhanced by the leadership provided by President Muhammadu Buhari and the unwavering commitment of the armed forces and its leadership,” he said.
The Kaduna government
Meanwhile, the Kaduna government said Tuesday that the “evacuation of passengers on the trapped Kaduna-bound train from Abuja has been concluded this morning by security forces, officials of Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and Nigerian Red Cross.”
Samuel Aruwan, the Commissioner, Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Kaduna, issued a statement, explaining that “passengers who sustained injuries, and other fatalities, have been moved to hospitals.”
According to him,”passengers were evacuated from different hard-to-reach areas in forests and rocky locations in Audujongom, off the Kaduna-Abuja Road.”
“As stated yesterday, the Kaduna Government is still liaising with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) to ascertain the list from the passengers manifest for efficient tracking.”
Nigerians are in a mix of sadness, outrage, and anxiety. They wrote:
“This lady tweeted that she had been shot during the train attack. Some sycophants felt that’s a bad PR for the government, and jumped on the tweet to mock her. This morning we woke up to a report of her death from gunshot wounds, and they’ve been in a rush to delete their tweets.
Everyone continues to complain about insecurity in the nation, with little or no understanding of its source or sources. Can there be an effect without a cause? What else can, possibly, instigate insecurity, other than the challenges of poverty and unemployment?
Premium Times, 2022
In other news, the Chief of Division, Small Arms in the Organised Crime West African Response to Trafficking (OCWAR-T), Nanan Ahoba said the lack of adherence to the guidelines on small arms control has resulted in insecurity and crimes in parts of Nigeria and the ECOWAS region.
He spoke during the Joint Planning Retreat On Enhancing Small Arms Control in Nigeria where he presented a lecture titled ‘Strengthening Small Arms Control In Nigeria’.
A communique issued at the end of the arms conference said:
“The continued incidences of arms proliferation fuel terrorism, kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, communal conflicts, farmer/herders’ crisis, political crises among others.
“It is more so apparent in the frontline states of Burkina, Niger, Mali and Nigeria, where the menace of terrorism, kidnapping and banditry continue to thrive.
“One of the potent regional responses to these crises was the adoption of ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons.”
Insecurity in Nigeria
There are too many factors that contribute to insecurity, and while we list poverty and unemployment, we seem to forget that these armed groups get some sort of funding, and insecurity itself is usually politicised so the government in power does not look weak.
We also forget that these armed groups are enabled by a lack of proper funding for security forces, a case where the budget gives a number and the monies go into private pockets.
There seems to be no political will to stop insecurity, except the continuous blame game that sees more headlines than action to end insecurity.
HURIWA, in a statement signed by Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, its National Coordinator, expressed disappointment and sadness with the increasing spate and sophistication of coordinated attacks by unknown gunmen in Imo and terrorists in North West.
The group’s reaction followed the weekend’s temporary take over of the Kaduna International Airport by over 200 well-armed terrorists and the attack in the wee hours of Monday, March 28, 2022, in Obowo police formation in Imo State in which two police operatives were seriously injured.
The group wants the President “to immediately rejig his national defence strategy by appointing serving senior military Generals as Minister of Defence and NSA.”
The human rights advocacy group pointed out that “the appointments of very senior and experienced military officers who are currently abreast with the global best practices and the 21st-century compliant innovative ideas to beat back the attacks of terrorists and the so-called unknown gunmen are exactly the expertise the country needs to navigate successfully away from terrorist attacks.”
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