In a statement released by Reuben Abati this evening,President
Goodluck Jonathan has strongly condemned the bomb blast which reportedly
killed about 200 in Jos today..
“President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan strongly condemns the bomb blasts in
Jos, Plateau state, today, describing the perpetrators of this tragic
assault on human freedom as cruel and evil. He has also directed all
relevant agencies to mobilize support and relief efforts in aid of the
victims. The President extends his heartfelt sympathies to the affected
families and persons.
President Jonathan assures all Nigerians that government remains fully committed to
winning the war against terror, and this administration will not be
cowed by the atrocities of enemies of human progress and civilization
President Jonathan has also expressed Nigeria’s deepest appreciation
to the international community on the success of the recent Summit in
Paris on the security situation in Nigeria hosted by the President of
France, Francois Hollande.
He reaffirms Nigeria’s commitment to the implementation of the
resolutions reached by the Summit, in addition to existing measures
already being taken by the administration to combat terrorism and ensure
the safety of lives.
President Jonathan states that the Federal Government of Nigeria is
prepared to strengthen existing mechanisms to ensure the immediate
implementation of the resolutions of The Summit, among which are:
i. That every necessary measure should be taken to find the
school girls abducted by Boko Haram terrorists from Government Girls’
Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State on 14th April 2014;
ii. That Nigeria and other countries in the sub-region will continue
to co-operate and co-ordinate efforts to combat the Boko Haram menace.
iii. That the Heads of State have agreed that each country will
contribute one battalion of troops to the international force set up to
patrol the border areas, in line with the Resolution of the Lake Chad
Basin Commission. France, United States of America and the United
Kingdom will extend technical assistance to achieve this objective;
iv. That the countries will come together to put in place an effective border management regime;
v. That no effort will be spared to stop the proliferation of small
arms and light weapons and the supply of arms and equipment made
available to terrorists.
President Jonathan considers these measures very useful aspects of the
concerted international effort to combat terrorism and put an end to the
Boko Haram menace. In addition, the President, in Abuja, today,
directed relevant government agencies to ensure enhanced implementation
of the following programmes in the areas affected by Boko Haram
atrocities:
(i) Emergency relief assistance: The intensification of on-going
relief assistance programmes by the National Emergency Management Agency
(NEMA)) in partnership with donor agencies. The programme will ensure
rapid deployment of relief assistance to the affected local government
areas and communities. This will include provision of food supplies,
medical supplies, basic relief commodities, and conditional cash
transfer programmes for affected households;
(ii) Rapid needs assessment: To support additional intervention
programmes in the region, the President has also directed that on-going
rapid needs assessment by government agencies should be accelerated to
identify affected communities and households and assess the extent of
damage to public and private infrastructure, amongst others.
(iii) Safety of schools: President Jonathan has also reiterated
Nigeria’s determination to ensure the safety and security of schools in
Borno and other parts of the country and also provide counselling
services to any affected students to enable them return to school and
continue with their academic work.
Furthermore, the Federal Government of Nigeria will rebuild the Chibok
School and fortify security in schools. In collaboration with the UN
Secretary-General’s Envoy on Education, former British Prime Minister
Gordon Brown and the private sector, the government will launch the
“Safe Schools Initiative” which will address security issues; re-build
the destroyed schools; and provide equipment and materials.”
Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media and Publicity)
May 20, 2014
