Sunday’s terror attack at St Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State in South-West Nigeria opened a new chapter in the parlous security situation in Nigeria. The terrorists tactically chose a church and a location in southern Nigeria to make a statement that its reach had gone beyond the North as was previously assumed.
Since 2009 when the Islamic terror group, Boko Haram, adopted suicide bombing as part of its modus operandi, terror attacks on churches, mosques, schools, police stations, military formations, and government agencies, and had occurred mainly in the North.
With the Owo massacre, which reportedly killed dozens of worshippers—put at between 30 and 70—worship centres across Nigeria will no longer be at ease. Places where many people gather like shopping malls, schools, markets, public buses, bus stops, etc, will be seen as potential targets.
Reports said that the unidentified attackers got to the church when the service was closing, detonated bombs, which created panic, and then began to mow down the worshippers as they burst out of the church in a bid to escape. Many children, as well as women and men, were among those killed.
Narrating the incident to CNN on Sunday, not long after the incident occurred, Adeyemi Olayemi, the legislator representing the Owo constituency in the Ondo State House of Assembly, said that at least 28 people were killed. But some of the injured taken to the hospital died afterwards. Olayemi said the attackers came in motorcycles and started shooting sporadically, killing many people.
THISDAY newspaper reported that, when it visited the church, it observed that the gunmen used dynamites to destroy the altar of the church. Part of the POP of the altar was destroyed due to the impact of the explosives. The floor of the church was smeared with the blood of the casualties. An eyewitness, Ikechukwu Eze, told THISDAY that the gunmen were up to 10, adding that when securitymen later arrived at the scene of the incident, the angry people chased them away.
Throughout Sunday and the greater part of Monday, no group took responsibility for the attack or gave any reason for carrying out the attack. But what reason could be adduced for such a heinous attack?
It seems that each time, those carrying out these attacks try to break whatever record they had set. On March 26, some gunmen breached security at the Kaduna International Airport, North-West Nigeria, but only succeeded in killing one person. Two days after, they attacked a train operating between Kaduna and Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, killing some people and abducting many of the passengers. Those who paid the huge ransoms were promptly set free, while some are still in their custody over a month after.
Talking about ransom, last week, the Prelate of the Methodist Church in Nigeria, the Most Rev. Samuel Kanu-Uche, recounted his kidnapping experience, saying that the kidnappers demanded a ransom of N100 million. They were threatened with death if that amount was not paid and promptly too. The minister said that their abductors boasted that they would use the ransom to buy weapons and get ready to take on any group.
On Thursday, two persons were killed and many injured in an explosion that occurred during an annual Echane festival in the Idoji area of Okene, Kogi State. Kogi State is in the North-Central zone of Nigeria but shares boundaries with Ondo State. Reports say that the explosion occurred close to the Idoji market in the town on Thursday evening.
On Saturday, the Islamic State in West Africa Province took credit for the attack, claiming that 20 people were killed instead of the two confirmed by the police. The police said they were waiting for the outcome of the investigation by their anti-bomb unit to confirm what type of device caused the explosion.
Giving an update on attacks that have occurred in Kogi State in recent times, an online newspaper, TheCable, reported that on April 23, gunmen attacked a police station in Adavi LGA in the state, which resulted in the death of three police officers. A few days later, ISWAP claimed responsibility for the attack.
On May 11, there was an explosion at a bar in Lewu Junction area of Kabba town, Kogi. Two weeks later, another explosion occurred at a bar in Kabba town, Kabbah-Bunu LGA.
Ondo State has also been at the forefront of the campaign against open grazing. On many occasions, the Ondo State Security Network Agency, codenamed Amotekun, had seized heads of cattle grazing in the open and their owners have been made to pay a fine to reclaim them. This has elicited condemnation from different herdsmen’s groups, who had seen the ban on open grazing and arrest as victimisation.
Reacting to the attack on St Francis Church, Owo, the Governor of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu, who is from Owo, said, “It is a black Sunday in Owo. Our hearts are heavy. Our peace and tranquillity have been attacked by the enemies of the people. This is a personal loss, an attack on our dear state… I have had to cut short my party’s national assignment in Abuja and visit Owo immediately. This is an unexpected development. I am shocked, to say the least.
“We shall never bow to the machinations of heartless elements in our resolves to rid our state of criminals. I commiserate with my people in Owo, particularly, the families of those who lost their lives to this ugly and unfortunate attack. I extend my condolences to Olowo of Owo, Oba Gbadegesin Ogunoye, as well as the Catholic Church.”
In his own response to the attack, President of Nigeria, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), said in a statement by his special adviser on media and publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, that “only fiends from the nether region could have conceived and carried out such dastardly act.” He added, “No matter what, this country shall never give in to evil and wicked people and darkness will never overcome the light. Nigeria will eventually win.”
That the people feel frustrated and helpless manifested in the way they reacted to the security operatives who visited the scene of the attack. By chasing them away, the people registered their displeasure that the nation has been ineffective in protecting them against similar attacks across the country. Reports say that the gunmen operated for between 20 and 30 minutes without any response from the security operatives.
The people who carried out the attack could also have the intention to create an inter-ethnic fight. Both the state and federal governments should take measures to ensure that this does not escalate to that.
Nigeria has been failing its citizens repeatedly. One year to the end of his second four-year term, it is hoped that Buhari will finally take steps that will make him stop sending out condolence messages every week or fortnight. He is a president and not an undertaker.
Twitter: @BranAzuka
