APC Disregards Rumours Concerning Nomination Of Ministers

 The All Progressives Congress (APC) has disregard media speculations concerning the nomination of ministers and advised Nigerians to do the same.

The party has urged Nigerians to disregard the wild speculations making the rounds concerning the appointment of ministers and the zoning of offices under the incoming Buhari government.

      

The APC released a statement by Lai Mohammed, its National Publicity Secretary, in which the party stated there is no truth to anything that has been dished out anywhere, concerning the issues of appointment, especially the zoning of the National Assembly’s principal positions and other offices.

The party said that in the true tradition of the APC, all issues of public interest will be handled transparently and conveyed to Nigerians through the usual communication channels.

The statement read in part: “No appointments have been made and no offices have been zoned. The main concern of our party at the moment is to ensure a smooth transition and to hit the ground running, in the overall interest of the long-suffering people of Nigeria".

”At the appropriate time, Nigerians will be informed of the appointments made and the offices zoned.”

Terrorism: A Conspiracy of Silence

By Dakuku Peterside

I know that silence is an ill-wind. Those who keep silent in the face of great moral crisis diminish humanity and the very essence of living. Nothing exemplifies this reprehensible culture of silence like the eternal words of Martin Neimoller, the great anti-Nazi theologian and preacher.

“First, they came for the communist; I did not speak out because I was not a communist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the Catholics and I did not speak up because I was a protestant. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me”, Neimoller said in 1946.

The anti-Nazi theologian made these timeless remarks while addressing German intellectuals and leaders of thought following the Nazi rise to power and the annihilation of their targets that triggered world-wide condemnation.

Today, Nigeria faces global outrage on account of terrorism and particularly the abducted Chibok girls which still continue to dominate headlines across the world. To be honest, I feel low anytime the story and the accompanying horrific pictures of those innocent girls and their abductors are shown on international media. I do not think we need to overemphasize the fact that we live in a globalised world and that the voices of our neighbours matter. But we did not get here overnight.

The principal role of government is the protection of lives and properties. When government fails in this responsibility it has a moral crisis of legitimacy at hand. The international community has expressed concern about the role of government in this whole saga but our people have maintained unusual and troubling silence. Government regrettably views every criticism, no matter how constructive, as voice of detractors. Religious, traditional, political and economic leaders have refused to speak out against government apathy and even against insurgents.

We all appreciate the fact that the fight against terror in Nigeria has stretched the citizenry who are the real victims, and the government. Every day, from Maiduguri, Yobe and Yola to Jos, Bauchi, Kano and Kaduna, we watch helplessly as lives are snuffed and dreams aborted. Sadly, one could almost predict the hypocrisy and cyclic response that greet these bombings, abductions and arson that now threaten our country.
Since this devastating act of extreme evil took a new turn on 25th February 2014 with the fatal raid on Federal Government College, Buni Yadi, Yobe State where over 30 male students were murdered and undisclosed number of female students abducted, Nigerians have not known peace. Today, Boko Haram literally keeps everybody on the edge, creating fear, confusion and uncertainty in the minds of our country men and women.

What is baffling for me however, is our attitude generally as a people. I hasten to add here that this does not in any way preclude government of the day from blame. In fact, government is the chief culprit. Take for instance this unfortunate Chibok abduction. At the beginning, a deafening silence from government greeted news of the kidnap.  It took sometime before there was noticeable seriousness on the part of government, which is after some of its apologists had openly expressed doubts over the veracity of the abduction. There are also a good number of Nigerians who claim that they have not seen enough will and commitment on the part of government to inspire confidence and hope.

As Nigerians, a few people would argue the fact that as citizens, we have also not done enough to assist our law enforcement agents. Have we volunteered enough information that would necessarily support our embattled military and others in the law enforcement chain? Have we, in our thoughts and action genuinely shown enough patriotism and concern in seeing that we defeat this evil? What about this conspiracy of silence that is still lurking around us?
The plain truth is that our armed forces and the police are not spirits, the bulk of their work depends largely on intelligence and if we hope to circumvent the antics of this deadly sect, we must be willing to go beyond the surface.
I must commend the efforts of our vibrant civil society organisations and volunteers who are bracing all odds in an attempt to draw more attention to this needless crisis but there is still a huge deficit.

I am nonetheless happy that part of this deficit is already been addressed by some groups. I am proud of the Mrs. Oby Ezekwesili led Bring Back Our Girls Campaign and that citizens’ action must be commended for the now popular 10 questions for the federal government.   The 2Face Idibia’s Million Voices for Peace (MVP) Project also deserves commendation. Some artists under the umbrella of the MVP, in an attempt to draw attention to the global call for the release of the abducted girls have recorded a major song of peace and unity titled Break the Silence to raise funds to support the on-going campaign for the girls. But we must go beyond the MVP initiative if we truly hope to break this silence. We must therefore enlist the support and understanding of all Nigerians to defeat Boko Haram.

Members of Boko Haram are not ghosts. But we must be vigilant because we have in our midst, their admirers, confidants, siblings and other relatives who know that they deal and live on the blood of the poor, the innocent and the vulnerable. This is the most disturbing part of our tragedy today. So we are faced with the truth that many Nigerians would consciously support evil rather than repudiate it because they know the roles of their kith and kin, and this reality of the present says a mouthful.  
There are also those who fear to upset the apple cart because of the dire consequences. In our society, Boko Haram therefore thrives because men and women are afraid of any form of discomfort in their different comfort zones. Others, regrettably see the sect as a distant phenomenon that is already constrained by geography and weather.

But both the leadership and the led must urgently embark on attitude change because we are already reaping the awful dividends of insurgency. I also know there is a strong belief in some quarters that there is a colossal failure of policy and management of men and materials in the execution of this on-going war that is dragging for too long. For that reason, the executive must look inwards for solutions. The federal government should also be amenable to criticism. A situation where the executive misconstrues every critical point is further exacerbating the situation and widening the already existing gulf between the leadership and the led. The federal government in my considered opinion should also be magnanimous enough to accept criticism and desist from the practice of branding critics as opposition and detractors.

This is therefore a time to stand up and be counted. After all according to Martin Luther King Jnr, “in the end we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”.
  

Peterside, a member of the House of Representatives is chairman, House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream)

President Goodluck Jonathan and Gov Kashim Shetttima

President Goodluck Jonathan and Gov Kashim Shetttima

Eddy Odivwri

A special report released  Thursday by Reuters has revealed how the political differences between the leadership at the federal level and those of the states worst hit by the insurgency have helped to inflame the attacks in the North-east.

Titled “The Rift Behind Nigeria’s Torment”, the report which identified the three factors of politics; corruption and administrative ineptitude for the increased cases of terrorism in the North-east. noted that the fact that President Goodluck Jonathan and the governors of the affected states do not belong to the same political party has inadvertently helped to stoke the fire of insurgency in the North-east part of the country.

“Divisions, low morale and corruption within the military have allowed the Islamist militants to take over large swathes of Nigeria’s northeast,” the report said, adding that: “A bitter struggle between the federal government in Abuja and at least two state governors in the northeast has made it harder to coordinate a response to the group, say analysts and security sources.”

While President Jonathan belongs to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), all the three states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, where state of emergency has been declared and where insurgents’ attacks have been fiercest are controlled by governors in the main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).

According to the report, President Jonathan and Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State had had a frosty relationship arising from the latter’s remark last February that the Boko Haram members are better equipped and motivated than the men of the Nigerian military.
To support the governor’s assertion, the report pointed out that:

“In pure numbers, Boko Haram is out-matched. It has an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 members, three security sources said, whereas a Nigerian task force in Borno State numbers around 12,000, including soldiers and police.

But soldiers told Reuters that morale is low. Their commanders pocket some of their salaries, they often don’t have enough to eat, and they live in fear of Boko Haram attacks, some said.

“They (Boko Haram) are better equipped,” one soldier told Reuters by telephone, adding that he couldn’t stand up to a Boko Haram attack at his security post. “I’m taking a knife to a gunfight,” he said.

The report further blamed the Nigerian military for tardiness and routine failure to respond to security issues, as a factor that emboldened the insurgents. The report cited the failure of the military to maintain the aircraft drones it bought from Israel, which could have been used to wage the war against the insurgents after the kidnap of the Chibok students, but lamented that the drone had remained unserviced and so was grounded.

According to the report, “Widespread corruption means a lack of investment in training and failure to maintain equipment. Money is often wasted. Nigeria bought Israeli surveillance drones in 2006 that might have been used to hunt for the girls, but poor maintenance has left them grounded, the aircraft's manufacturer said.”

It lamented further that although the Nigerian military receives allocation of about N1 trillion annually, soldiers in the North-east are “stretched”, quoting some of the soldiers as saying.

The report reiterates the narrative that if the military had acted promptly, the abduction of the over 200 girls would have been avoided. It narrates the experience of Mr. Danuma Mphur, the Chairman of the Parents’ Teachers Association (PTA) of Government Secondary School, Chibok, who had prior information about the attack on Chibok. Mphur was said to have called the police and other security operatives in the surrounding asking for reinforcement of the 15 soldiers that were on ground. But lamented that no help came, more than three hours after the security authorities were hinted.

But Brig. Gen. Chris Olukolade, the army spokesman, had explained that the reinforcement being sent to Chibok on the night of the attack was ambushed and killed by the insurgents.

It said: “Interviews with witnesses to the kidnapping, Nigerian military and security officials, Western diplomats and counter-terrorism experts, highlight a series of failings by politicians and the military in the struggle against the group, not just in the hours leading up to the raid on the school, but over several years”.

It argued that the failings in the military over the years had helped to weaken the combat readiness of the troops, which the insurgents have discovered and taking full advantage of.

It cited the attack of last December of a military base in Maiduguri Air Force base, where the Boko Haram fighters destroyed two helicopters and three military aircraft. And that fearing that another attack could ground the entire arsenal of the Force, the remaining helicopter gunships were moved to Markurdi and Port Harcourt, the Benue and Rivers States’ capitals respectively, which are reasonable distant from the war field.

“The military’s weakness was evident again in February when dozens of fighters loyal to Boko Haram descended on a remote military outpost in the Gwoza hills, about 100 km (60 miles) east of Chibok.

The fighters attacked using Hilux trucks mounted with machine guns over ground that offered little cover, a security source said. In a battle lasting hours, 50 insurgents and nine Nigerian troops were killed, the source said. Despite those losses, the militants succeeded in looting the base of its stockpile of 200 mortar bombs, 50 rocket-propelled grenades and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

Two weeks later, Boko Haram fighters attacked a college in Buni Yadi in Yobe State, which borders Borno. They killed 59 teenage boys, and two security sources said they also kidnapped 11 schoolgirls, the report lamented.

Jonathan Offers Conditional Amnesty to Boko Haram

• CAN kicks against offer

Jaiyeola Andrews and Segun Awofadeji

Determined to explore various options that can rein in the increasingly destructive attacks on Nigerians by the terrorist group, Boko Haram, President Goodluck Jonathan has announced the offer of amnesty to members of the outlawed Islamic sect.

The offer may be patterned after the type offered the Niger Delta Militants who renounced violence, surrendered their arms and embraced dialogue; after which they were put through a de-militarisation process and non-violence training.

The scheme is presently running in batches supervised by the amnesty office Abuja.

But the Bauchi State chapter of the  Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has urged the president to rescind the decision, arguing that not only has the terrorists rejected all past entreaties for dialogue and reconciliation, the real reason why they are striking is because a southerner is in power.

President Jonathan, in his Democracy Day broadcast yesterday promised to “pursue all options” that could lead to the containment of the insurgency attacks on Nigeria, adding that his government is maintaining an open door policy on the matter.

The amnesty programme, which was announced by the Minister of Youth Development, Mr. Boni Haruna, in furtherance of the president’s speech yesterday, is said to have been one of the “reserved options” the federal government has considered in the various efforts to tackle the menace of the terror gang.

Haruna, a former governor of Adamawa State, one of the states affected by the reign of terror from the Boko Haram group, gave an overview of the youth's position in the Jonathan administration's transformation agenda at a special event titled "A day with young leaders of Nigeria."

The event, which held at the International Conference Centre, in Abuja, was in commemoration of Democracy Day.
According to the minister, various integration programmes had been mapped out for the dreaded sect members who surrender their arms and embrace peace.

Although the Youth Development Minister did not discuss the modalities of the amnesty programme, THISDAY gathered that it may be fashioned after the scheme offered to the Niger Delta militants.

In this wise, Haruna urged Boko Haram members to embrace  government's gesture.
"President Goodluck Jonathan has also declared amnesty for members of the Boko Haram sect.

"Series of integration programmes have been lined up for the members of the sect who would surrender their arms and embrace peace.

"Let me use this opportunity on behalf of the federal government, to call on the members of the Boko Haram sect to embrace the government's gesture and key in to the amnesty programme," the minister said.

Going down memory lane, the minister said a few years ago, a similar amnesty was granted Niger Delta militants to curb youth restiveness in the area.

According to him, 30,000 youths benefited from the programme, and the aftermath effect was the transforming of militants to wealth creators, employers of labour and skilled citizens.

Jonathan, who fielded questions from youths, noted that force alone could not solve the problem of insurgency.

The offer of amnesty by the president seems to suggest the resort to the carrot-and-stick approach, as earlier in the day, the president had announced that he had ordered the Nigerian military for a full-scale attack on the insurgents in order to end their reign in the country.

According to the president, “The unity and stability of our country, and the protection of lives and property are non-negotiable. I have instructed our security forces to launch a full-scale operation to put an end to the impunity of terrorists on our soil.
“I have also authorised the security forces to use any means necessary under the law to ensure that this is done. I assure you that Nigeria will be safe again, and that these thugs will be driven away – it will not happen overnight - but we will spare no effort to achieve this goal.”

The president said without local support, it would be practically impossible for terrorists to succeed in any community.
He called on the people respected by the violent sect to join hands with the government, with a view to persuading them to put an end to their violent campaign.

"Terror succeeds with local support. It will be difficult for terror to thrive where people reject it. It is a major challenge to all of us.
"Military alone cannot stop terror or any radicalism. Terrorists have people they respect, they have community, traditional and opinion leaders they respect. All of us can de-radicalise them.
"We will through persuasive activities encourage people to shun violence," the president said.

He added that his administration was already mapping out modalities for re-introducing moral education to schools' curriculum.
Doing this according to him, would greatly re-orientate the young people so as to enable them know the difference between right and wrong.

He promised that his administration would continue to encourage young people, as they are no longer leaders of tomorrow but of today.

Putting the population of youths at 60 per cent of the electorate, Jonathan noted that youths are already leading because they decide who rules at all levels of government.

The president also reiterated his position that the nation's income distribution scheme was skewed.
He stressed that government was working hard to redistribute the nation’s wealth by encouraging self-employment.
Responding to a question on the need to have a youth as the Minister of Youth Development, the president said: "The best person to take care of a child may not necessarily be a child."

He called on youths  to tap from the experiences of older ones.
Those at the event included former Head of the Interim National Government, Chief Ernest Shonekan; a former Vice-President, Chief Alex Ekwueme; and a former Chief of General Staff, Chief Oladipo Diya.

Also at the event were the president's wife, Patience, Vice-President Namadi Sambo; and the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Maryam Mukhtar.

Bauchi CAN Objects
But while the government in the days ahead will be working out the modalities of the promised amnesty scheme, the Bauchi State Chapter of CAN has urged President Jonathan not to succumb to the demand of northern elite of granting amnesty to the Islamic sect,  Boko Haram, arguing that the genesis of terrorism in Nigeria is because power has shifted from the north.

It said the dreaded group had previously rejected all offers of dialogue by the federal government, hence it would be a waste of time and resources to grant them amnesty.

The Kabiru Turaki Committee, which was set up to seek out and dialogue with members of the sect toured the country but could hardly be said to have any meaningful impact as members of the sect shunned their rapprocahment.

The Secretary of Bauchi CAN, Rev. Joshua Rai, while reacting to the offer of amnesty,  lamented that the 15 years of democracy rule in the country had been marred by continuous spate of bomb attacks and killings of innocent citizens.

He said: "I strongly disagree with the president's position of accepting unconditional renouncement of violence by insurgents and reintegrating them back to the society. What the president should consider is these people are not interested in repenting or negotiating with the government on realistic grounds."

Continuing, he said: "President Jonathan inherited this terrorism challenge from the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and he is battling with it because the north do not want him in power. So the northern elite formed this militant group to continue to shed blood all in the name of restoring power back to the north."

According to the CAN secretary, the war against insurgency would linger in the north for a long time because some top security officers are aiding the operations of Boko Haram, particularly in Borno State.
He advised northern governors to interact with the stakeholders in the region with the aim of bringing to an end the unrest in the northern part of the country.

Presidency,US angry with Defence Chief for saying he knows the location of abducted Chibok Girls

On Monday, The Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshall Alex Badeh said the military knew the location of the schoolgirls, abducted on April 14. This has reportedly infuriated the FG and US .President Jonathan is reportedly unhappy with the claim ,which he considered as a breach of military tactics capable of hindering the efforts to free the school girls.
The U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters, yesterday..

“we don’t have independent information from the United States to support that statement. We, as a matter of policy and for the girls’ safety and wellbeing, would not discuss publicly this sort of information regardless.” 

Saraki applauds US, UK intervention

A chieftain of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State, Senator Gbemisola Saraki, has applauded the intervention of international community, including the United States of America (USA), United Kingdom (UK), among others, with the aim of rescuing the abducted Chibok schoolgirls and put an end to the Boko Haram insurgency in the country.

The senator stated this in a statement made available to the Nigerian Tribune on Monday, saying that Nigeria needed all the support it could get from the world now for lasting peace to reign in the country.

Saraki’s position came sequel to last Saturday’s meeting in France, involving France, the host country, USA, UK and neighbouring West African countries.

In a statement issued by her Special Assistant on Media, Mr Sola Shittu, Senator Saraki stated further that beyond the international community’s intervention, the Federal Government should also ensure that our security agencies were well-equipped and trained to provide safety to lives and property for Nigerians.

She dismissed criticism of the government’s move to seek international assistance, saying that there was nothing absolutely wrong with it.

“If you will recollect, Nigeria has, on many occasions, rendered assistance to many African countries and the world in general. We have been contributing the largest troops from Africa to the United Nations contingents for so many years now.

Army Recruits To Beef Up Fight Against Insurgency

Abuja – The Nigerian Army (NA) on Wednesday said it had commenced recruitment of qualified able men into the service to beef up its strength in the ongoing war against insurgency.
The Director of Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Olajide Laleye, made the disclosure at a news conference in Abuja.
He said “those recruited will be trained, after which they will form part of the force to undertake campaign in the North-East.
“In the same vein, the Nigerian Army will also commission duly qualified interested Nigerians as officers through the Direct Short Service Commission (DSSC) and Short Service Commission.
“Already, the office of the Military Secretary has sent out adverts in some national dailies for interested candidates.’’
Lalaye decried sections of the media for undertaking a smear campaign calculated to undermine the numerous achievements of the army.
He said that in spite of the efforts of the NA to tackle the insecurity problem in the country, some individuals, bodies and organisations were working toward tarnishing its image.
He added that “this group and their international collaborators are trying hard to portray the Nigerian military as corrupt with myriad of problems and challenges ranging from morale of troops, equipment and troops welfare.
“However, the army as one of the binding forces of the unity of Nigeria is far from being weak and ineffective.’’
Commenting on the recent mutiny by soldiers in Borno, the director said “isolated cases, which normally occur during operations such as the one in the North East should not be taken as the norm.’’
He said that the army had performed creditably well in all operations assigned to it and it recorded outstanding performances in peacekeeping and internal security operations.’’
Layele said that the army was steadily reversing the ugly menace of terrorism and insurgency in parts of the country.
He added that troops’ allowances had always been paid when due, including allowances for the month of May 2014.
The spokesman insisted that if there were factual cases of corruption against the army, such reports should be made available to the authorities. (NAN)

The ongoing National Conference resumed its plenary session on a rowdy note as delegates commenced debate on the reports of the 20 standing committees.

The debate started on Wednesday with the report of the Committee on Citizenship, Immigration and Related Matters.

The debate on the recommendation of a committee for the creation of grazing reserves for Fulani Herdsmen brought about sharp disagreement among the delegates along ethnic lines.

Delegates, mostly from the southern part of the country, kicked against suggestions that special areas and treatment be given to herdsmen to curtail the reoccurring clashes between the herdsmen and farmers.

The delegates raised the objection during the debate on the report of the Committee on Citizenship, Immigration and Related Matters, chaired by the Emir of Yauri and delegate representing National Council of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria, Alhaji Zayyanu Abdullahi.

However,  a proposed amendment to a recommendation introduced by a delegate from Benue State, Dr Magdalene Dura, to restrict the movement of cattle rearers or creation of modernised grazing reserves for the herdsmen and their cattle, with all the expenses borne by their states of origin, divided the delegates along regional lines and stalled the proceedings.

Dura stirred the hornets’ nest when she said any special treatment or special funds for the herdsmen, who are engaged in economic activities, would breach the provisions of Section 42 of 1999 constitution.

According to her, the herdsmen enjoy the same rights like every other Nigerian and they are free to live in any part of the country.

She said if the proposal for special fund for the herdsmen sailed through, it should also extend to other Nigerians engaged in other economic activities like farmers.

Another delegate, Chris Abongabe, who was the first to comment on the report of the committee, asked what would happen to itinerant fishermen, who move around a lot, if special treatment was give to nomadic herdsmen.

The development forced the Chairman of the conference, Justice Idris Kutigi, to abruptly stop the session and consideration of the contentious issue brought about by the committee’s report and called for adjournment till Thursday.

While an overwhelming majority of the members in the House was in favour of the proposal introduced by Dura, mainly northern delegates vehemently kicked against it.

Northern delegates, including Alhaji Bashiru Albasu, a former AIG representing the Association of Retired Police Officers of Nigeria, and Mallam Naseer Kura, representing a Kano-based civil society group, Basic Rights Action, described the proposal as discriminatory and vowed to mobilise his people to resist any move to change the status quo.

Also contributing, Alhaji Muhammad Magaji Dambatta (North West Delegate) and Alhaji Mohammad Dingyadi, representing Sokoto State, said the proposal for a grazing reserve to be borne by the states of origin of the herdsmen and supported by the delegates, was discriminatory and smacked of high level of irresponsibility by the proponents.

Danbata said, “These cattle rearers are also Nigerians and have equal rights to traverse the country without let or hindrance.”

In his intervention, Justice Kutigi expressed dismay at the turn of events and urged delegates to refrain from making remarks that could throw spanners in the wheel of the successes so far recorded by the conference, especially during their committee meetings.

Last month, they abducted over 200 schoolgirls in Borno State; on Thursday, they attacked two schools in Bauchi State; on Sunday, they bombed Kano city. Today (Tuesday), it is the turn of Jos again. God where are we heading for in Nigeria?”

These were the words of a trader in the ever-busy Jos Terminus Market where twin bomb blasts occurred on Tuesday.

The trader, who gave his name simply as James, said he was lucky to have survived with minor injuries but vowed to relocate his family from Jos where he had lived for two decades.

James was indeed lucky as eyewitnesses said that over 150   people lost their lives to the blasts.

The Cable News Network however reported a third explosion in Abuja Market in Jos where shoes are sold. It however did not give details.

Although eyewitnesses account put the death toll at 150, the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Chris Olakpe, said that 46 people were killed while 45 others were wounded.

The first bomb, which was said to have been detonated by a suicide bomber in a Fiat car, happened at about 3pm when the market was at its height. The second blast occurred from a Toyota Sienna about 20 metres from the scene of the first.

One of the eyewitnesses said the bomber in the Fiat car stopped it abruptly along the busy Muritala Mohammed Way which is very close to the old site of the Jos University Teaching Hospital.

He was said to have left the car for minutes to cause enough traffic build-up before he returned and detonated the explosives in it. The explosion was heard all over Jos and Bukuru metropolis.

However as people gathered to assist victims, some hoodlums started looting and burning cars. In the course of their action, some youths noticed the Toyota Sienna parked at some distance and went for it.

While trying to vandalise it, one of them put a light under the Sienna and immediately it exploded, killing nearly all those in the vicinity.

There was pandemonium all over the market as traders scrambled to close shops. Cars that tried to make a quick U-turn were trapped and many were burnt.

One of the eyewitnesses, who simply identified himself as Suleiman, told our correspondent in Jos that he was one of the few people that arrived at the scene and started helping the victims.

Suleiman whose clothes were blood-stained said that for more than 20 minutes after the blasts, there was no security presence.

He claimed that the policemen attached to a police post inside the   market took to their heels when the first bomb went off.

“I was in the place when the first explosion happened. I ran to the place and there was no security around to assist. Immediately, I and two other people started to help those injured.

The fire from the blast could not allow us to go near and help more people. It was terrible; I have never seen such a thing.”

Another eyewitness, Peter Amine, said, “We were inside the market when I heard a loud explosion at about 3.28pm. Before I knew what happened, a piece of metal landed very close to my legs.

He added that a thick dark smoke engulfed the scene, thus compounding the already chaotic situation as fear-stricken people, some covered with blood, screamed and ran for safety

A NewYork, United States -Based Nigerian news portal, Sahara Reporters, said the bombs,     were primed to inflict maximum casualties.

Olakpe, however, told journalists that the casualty figure he gave was not definite as there were possibilities of it increasing.

He said that the figure was obtained from the Plateau Specialist Hospital, and the Bingham University Teaching Hospital where most of the victims were taken to.

The police commissioner said, “At about 3 pm, I was in my office when I heard a loud explosion around the Terminus area. I immediately mobilised and moved to the area and just about 20 minutes later, the second explosion went off.

Olakpe said that one of the lessons to be learnt from the incident was that people should not rush to the site of a bomb blast as there was the likelihood of another .

He added that the police had commenced what he called a “post-blast investigation” and   appealed to the traders in the market to stay away for a while so as not to jeopardise the probe.

Jonathan says perpetrators cruel, evil

President Goodluck Jonathan has condemned the bomb blasts, saying the   perpetrators were cruel and evil.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, the President also directed all relevant agencies to mobilise support and relief efforts in aid of the victims.

Abati said, “The President extends his heartfelt sympathies to the affected families and persons. He   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 civilisation.”

The Plateau State Commissioner for Information and Communication, Mrs. Olivia Dazem, however, said the state government regretted the incident and called for calm among the residents of the state.

Jonathan has also ordered the deployment of more troops in the North-East to aid the search for the abducted schoolgirs.

The Director-General of the National Orientation Agency who coordinates the National Information Centre, Mr. Mike Omeri, disclosed this at a news conference   in Abuja on Tuesday.

He also said that the structures for the operation of the forces from foreign nations had been put in place.

Omeri said, “I wish to inform you that President Jonathan has ordered the deployment of additional troops to reinforce the ongoing military operations in the North-East.

“This action comes in the wake of the regional alliance to checkmate the activities of Boko Haram in the zone and also goes to strengthen the President’s avowed resolve to rescue the   girls and his commitment to providing total security for all Nigerians.

“Meanwhile, the structures for the coordination of the activities of the input of the allied forces in the ongoing search and rescue operations have been set up, awaiting take off any moment from now.

“Just before we came here, we got information   that two explosions occurred in the Central Area of Jos. The police and other security agencies in the state have mobilised to site.”

Nigeria asks UN to blacklist B’ Haram

Meanwhile,   Nigeria has formally asked the United Nations Security Council al Qaeda Sanctions Committee to blacklist   Boko Haram for the kidnapping   schoolgirls .

If there is no objection by the 15-member council committee, which operates by consensus, Boko Haram will be sanctioned, the council diplomats told Reuters on Tuesday.

British Airplane Designated To Help In The Search Of The Kidnapped Chibok School Girls Breaks Down

A British surveillance jet which was on its way to Nigeria to help in the search for missing Chibok girls reportedly broke down in Senegal due to unspecified technical problems.

UK Ministry of Defense released a statement explaining this...

"A technical fault which has delayed the Sentinel aircraft on its way to Ghana is being investigated and will be solved as soon as possible. In the meantime the UK military team continues its work on the ground while other surveillance aircraft continue the search for the missing schoolgirls," .

British Prime Minister, David Cameron, announced that Britain would offer Nigeria a surveillance jet to help in the search of the missing girls.