FG vows to punish culprits, ACF demands GOC’s removal

The pan-northern socio-political organisation, the Arewa Consultative Forum, on Thursday, demanded the removal of the General Officer Commanding One Division of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna, Major-General V.U. Okoro,  over the accidental bombing of Tudun Biri in the Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State on Sunday night.

The ACF made the demand on Thursday as the Federal Government vowed to punish whoever was found culpable in the accidental bombing.

An air strike intended to flush out terrorists had on Sunday night accidentally hit civilians during a religious celebration at Tudun Biri.

The Vice President, Kashim Shettima, who represented President Bola Tinubu, during a visit to the victims of the bombing at Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital Kaduna on Thursday, said the government would get to the root of the incident.

He stated, “All measures will be taken to ensure that future occurrences are averted. The government will go to the root of the issue and anyone found culpable will be punished accordingly.”

Shettima disclosed that victims of the bombing would be taken care of under the Fulako Initiative of the President, which he described as a non-kinetic solution to the challenges in the North-West.

According to him, beneficiary states of the initiative include Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi, Katsina, and Kaduna. He added that for the purpose of equity and justice, Niger and Benue states were included.

According to Shettima, the Tudun Biri community will be the first community to be rebuilt under the new initiative.

He stated, “President Bola Tinubu sent us to commiserate with the people of Kaduna over the tragic incident. The calibre of people that are here with me is a testimony of how deeply touched the President is by the incident.

“The President was deeply touched by what happened. We would like to assure the people and the government of Kaduna State that the Federal Government will take measures to protect and preserve the interest of our nation.

“The victims will be well taken care of under the Fulako Initiative and this community will be the first to be rebuilt in the North-West zone.

Later on Thursday evening, the Vice-President, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, explained that the project, which would begin in January 2024, would include the building of houses, clinics, schools, veterinary clinics, empowerment initiatives, and solar energy, among others, in the Tudun Biri community.

He stated, “The President directed that the Pullako Initiative be kick-started here in Kaduna State. Tudun Biri will be the first beneficiary of that scheme. We are going to build houses that will complement the efforts of the Right Honorable Speaker.”

But the ACF, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Prof. Tukur Muhammad, called for the removal of some army officers in Kaduna to ensure thorough investigations.

It said, “The General Officer Commanding of One Division of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna, along with his immediate subordinate officers should be redeployed to allow for unfettered investigations.

“As a trite principle of justice, One Division of the Nigerian Army must not and should not be allowed to investigate itself. An independent panel of investigators is clearly indicated. Further, the results of the investigations must be made public, issues that border on national security considerations excepted.

“The defence headquarters should retract its needless statement. The Ministry of Defence, and the Armed Forces in particular, should take steps to ensure that such incidents are avoided or contained to the barest minimum humanly possible.

“The Federal Government must take responsibility for full compensation to all victims of Tudun Biri. The gesture should also be extended to victims from all previous such incidents.”

The ACF pointed out that since the Sunday, December 3, 2023, incident, two significant events had occurred to warrant a reaction by the forum.

It welcomed the visit of the Minister of State (Defence) along with the Chief of Army Staff and other top government officials to the Tudun Biri Community on December 6, 2023, where the delegation also attended the funeral rites of some of the 126 victims of the incident.