Suicide bomber kills 47 in boys school massacre

A simple daily routine turned bloody yesterday at a school in Yobe State.

No fewer than 47 pupils died and 79 were injured when a suicide bomber struck as pupils and teachers gathered for prayers before classes at the Government Science Technical School, Potiskum.

The incident happened exactly a week after close to 30 people were killed by another bomber that hit a Shiite procession in the town.

It was not immediately clear how the suicide bomber found his way into the school, which is predominately for boys in the 13 to 18 years age bracket.

Some accounts said the bomber may have disguised as one of the pupils.

One parent, who identified himself as Aminu, said his son, who is in the school, told him that a man came to the assembly grounds with a bag and was looking suspicious.

According to Aminu, his son said some pupils walked away from the man shortly before he detonated the bomb.

The bomb went off at the section of Junior Secondary School (JSS) I pupils who just got admitted into the school.

A hospital source confirmed that the head of the suicide bomber  was found among the dead pupils. He described the bomber as “very black” but he could not be identified.

There are conflicting casualty figures but sources at the Accident and Emergency Unit of the General Hospital, Potiskum said 33 pupils died. The Police said 47 pupils were killed.

But a hospital source dismissed the police figure as “false”.

Said the source: “We have 33 that are dead at the moment; 41 injured ones have been referred to nearby hospitals that have orthopaedic services because many of the injuries are multiple fractures. We are managing 26 in our hospital. The ones that we have on admission are mostly those that are bleeding and we are stopping the bleeding,” the source disclosed.

Several witnesses described the blast as “thunderous” and the bloody aftermath a scene of abandoned footwear, school books, bags and body parts.

“There was an explosion detonated by a suicide bomber. We have 47 dead and 79 injured,” Police Force Headquarters spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu said, adding that Boko Haram was believed to be responsible.

One rescue worker said the wounded had “various degrees of injuries”. Those who survived complained of hearing problems from the deafening blast.

The school has more than 1,000 pupils and caters for boys aged 15 to 20. The victims are all thought to be in their teens.

Pupil Adamu Abdullahi said those at the centre of the blast near the principal’s office were flung in all directions and others were knocked off their feet.

“I found myself under the weight of another student, who fell over me. I’m certain he was dead. I was dazed and disorientated for a moment,” he told AFP.

“When I realised what had happened, I managed to push the body on top of me and started running like everyone else. It was confusion all over. Everybody was hysterical.

“I saw many people on the ground. Human flesh and blood were splattered all over the place… I ran out of the school and went home.

“When my father saw me he was terrified. I didn’t realise my white school uniform was stained with human blood and bits of flesh.”

The dead and injured were taken to the Potiskum General Hospital just 100 metres away.

Angry residents blocked the road leading to the school and the hospital, preventing security agents from getting to the scene of the blast.

Police Commissioner Marcus Danladi, who was in Potiskum and Yobe State Commissioner Mohammed Alamin could not visit the scene – apparently to avoid being attacked by the residents.

The CP went to the palaces of the two Emirs in the town, urging them to ask the residents to allow the security agents do their job.

The Emir of Fika, Dr. Muhammadu Ibn Abali Muhamadu Idrissa, told the CP that he had sent some people to go to the scene and plead with the residents to allow securitymen do their job, adding that what happened with the Shiite people some days ago aggravated the residents anger”.

He condemned the act describing it as “callous and wicked”. He called on the local people to collaborate with securitymen in the fight against the insurgency.

The Emir of Potiskum, Alhaji Bubara Ibn Wuriwa Bauya, described the insurgency in the Northeast and the situation in the country as unfortunate.

He planned an expanded meeting of all his chiefs to discuss collaboration with securitymen to foster peace among the people.

Alhaji Bauya regretted the mob action at the hospital and the school, saying: “We really don’t know these peolle that are protesting. It is very bad to stage this kind of action at this critical time. We need the security people around us and we need to cooperate with them to fish out the bad people among.”

Speaking in Potiskum on why he did not go to the scene of the attack. Danladi said he did not want to cause more tension in the town.

“Well, as you can see, you and I are in Potiskum and I have seen the two Emirs who are the custodians of this town. From the report I got, the people are angry because of what happened in this town last week during the attack on the Shiite people.

“Because of that, I understand that after this attack, the people don’t want to see security people at the school and the hospital again. For me, nobody can stop me from going to that school but for the safety of the generality of the people, I have decided not to go to the place until the tension subsides.”

“I must say that my action should not be interpreted as an act of weakness but rather strategies to avoid any further breakdown of law and order that would lead to the loss of more lives in Potiskum,” CP Danladi explained.

The state government ordered the immediate closure of all schools in Potiskum.

The commissioner of Education, Alamin Mohammed, told our correspondent in Potiskum that all schools in the metropolis would remain closed until the government is convinced that security has improved.

Meanwhile, the senator representing Yobe South at the National Assembly, Sen. Abdulkadir Alkali Jajere APC (Yobe South) has condemned the bomb explosions on innocent students describing it as “inhuman, heinous  and barbaric”.

Sen. Jajere who spoke with our correspondent on phone tasked security operatives in the fight against the insurgency in the north east to change their tactics and move ahead of the insurgents.

“Recent and renewed attacks on the innocent citizenry calls for a change in strategy in the fight against insurgency.

“The number one responsibility of government is to protect the lives and property of the citizenry, government must step up to this basic responsibility” Jajere said

“We are optimistic that with the necessary support and motivation, the Nigerian security forces can defeat insurgency,” Sen. Jajare said.