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Tita Onyebuchi, Nze >Abuja <

ZAMFARA ACCIDENTAL AIR BOMBING: NUJ Mourns, Cautions Authority.

The Nigeria Union of Journalists NUJ, has announced its joining in mourning the accidental bombing in Tugar Kara, in Zurmi Local Government of Zamfara State by operations of the Nigerian Airforce. 

This was disclosed in a statement signed in Abuja by National Secretary of the Union, Comrade Achike Chude.

This is coming on the heels of other such incidences in some other theaters of conflict in the country, where the country's gallant troops sometimes make the ultimate sacrifice in their attempts to keep Nigeria safe. 

While commending the heroic sacrifices of the men and women in uniform and their civilian counterparts, Comrade Chude said, "it would amount to dereliction of NUJ's responsibilities if we are not able to say that the Zurmi incident is one accidental bombing too many in the engagements with bandit and insurgents in parts of our country". 

He said, so far, reports from credible sources, Newspapers and Intelligence platforms indicate that, over 300 civilians have met their untimely demise by accidental bombing in the hands of the Nigerian military since 2017, with Niger, Yobe, Zamfara, Borno, Nasarawa, Kaduna, and Katsina being the worst-hit States. 

Saying that, "the very difficult task confronting the Nigerian military and security services no doubt cannot be overemphasised, as they battle in various theaters to secure the country's borders an preventing internal corrosion of the nation's stability by non-state actors; which inadvertently comes with inconceivable accidents in the course of such conflicts; but by the modern warfare dynamics, including hi-tech intelligence gathering and the development including the use of guided military technology, high precision equipments"; He said, "such incidents and accidents should have been curtailed to the barest minimum or even at best be prevented".

The NUJ however observed the distress and regret shown by the military authorities over the incident and noted their promises to look into such occurrences to ensure that they are not repeated, but the military must also be reminded that such promises have been made severally in the past. 

The NUJ in its mandate of holding government and authorities accountable, therefore charges the military authority to this time around, step up their games, to ensure that all hands are on deck to do better.

The Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, shall continue to support the country's military and security agencies in their onerous tasks of securing, perhaps, one of the country's most dangerous periods since independence. 

While commisersting with the government and people of Zamfara State over the incidence, the NUJ urges the State government to strive to do the needful to dependents and families of the deceased as well as adequately rehabilitating the injured, this in the view of the NUJ, can also be done in conjuction with the military establishment. END

Achike Chude

National Secretary

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