Authorities confirm 40 killed in Yobe College attack, as governor, deputy weep

The Medical Director, Damaturu Specialist Hospital, Dr Garba Fika, has confirmed that 40 students of the College of Agriculture, Gujba, Yobe, were  killed by gunmen in the early hours of Sunday.

Mr. Garba said this when Gov. Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe visited the hospital to inspect the wounded and the corpses of students deposited at the mortuary.

He said that five students including three with fractures, one with bullet wound and other with abdominal injury were receiving treatment at the hospital.

The governor, who spoke in tears, urged security operatives to intensify aerial surveillance of the area.

The state deputy governor, Abubakar Aliyu, the Provost of the College Mulima Mato, and other dignitaries also shed tears at the mortuary when they saw the corpses of the students.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that schools in Yobe re-opened 13 days ago after 10 weeks of forced closure following attacks targeted on schools.

The attacks resulted in the death of 29 students and three teachers.

In June this year, seven students and two teachers were killed at Government Secondary School Damaturu.

In July, 22 students and two teachers were killed at Government Secondary School Mamudo.

As the government makes arrangement for the burial of the slain students, parents were seen in groups discussing the fate of their children in view of the serial attacks on schools in the state

Speaking in an interview with the NAN, a parent who requested anonymity said that he and other parents were scared of sending their children and wards to school.

“We are shocked, saddened and scared of sending our wards back to school with these ugly incidents of attack on schools in Damaturu, Mamudo and now, Gujba,”  he said.