Bomb Blast: Army Chief visits Tudun Biri, tenders apology

Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, has paid a condolence visit to the Tudun Biri community in  Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State. 

According to a statement signed by Director Army Public Relations, Onyema Nwachukwu, the COAS arrived in the community in the early hours of Tuesday.

He was accompanied by Principal Staff Officers from the Army Headquarters and the General Officer Commanding 1 Division, where he met with the Dangaladima Zazau, the District Head of Rigasa, Architect Aminu Idris, other leaders, and members of the community.

The COAS expressed regrets for the unfortunate mishap, describing it as a very disheartening occurrence.

Gen Lagbaja stated that in the recent past, the Tudun Biri and adjoining villages were infested with armed bandits, who terrorised the communities until troops of the Nigerian Army started conducting operations to sanitize the area and make it habitable. 

According to him, the troops were carrying out aeriel patrols when they observed a group of people and wrongly analysed and misinterpreted their pattern of activities to be similar to that of the bandits, before the drone strike.

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He stated that he was in Tudun Biri to personally witness the site of the mishap and to convey sincere regrets and tender apologies on behalf of the Nigerian Army to the District Head, people of the community, the government, and the entire people of Kaduna State. 

COAS maintained that he has ordered a thorough inquiry into the incident to ascertain and identify areas of deficiency that led to the inadvertent disaster.

He added that the findings and overarching outcome of the investigation will guide the NA in meticulously and professionally seeking and applying lasting solutions to identified lapses and deficiencies in both the human and Artificial Intelligence variables that will forestall future recurrence.

General Lagbaja also commiserated with the Chairman Jamaa’ atu Nasru Islam, Kaduna State Prof Shafiu Abdullahi, and other clerics.

The Chief of Army Staff equally visited affected victims at the Barua Dikko Teaching Hospital Anguwan  Rimi, Kaduna, where he expressed concern for the speedy recuperation of the hospitalized persons and made an immediate donation of several provisions for their upkeep.

Earlier, the District Head of Rigasa, Architect Aminu Idris said despite the enormity of the incident, the Nigerian Army showed integrity in accepting responsibility for the drone strike and urged its leadership to intervene in bringing succor to  hospitalized victims and the community for their losses. 

Idris maintained that the community is a mixed community of both Muslims and Christians and that the victims are of both faiths, contrary to earlier insinuation that the community is solely Muslim.