Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) have condemned the tragic incident that led to the loss of 23 travellers at Rukuba Road in Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau.

Atiku acknowledged that security outfits were doing their best in the current circumstances to make all Nigerians safe. He, however, said skirmishes such as the killings and the pain accompanying it make citizens feel as though enough is not being done.

He said that the country should continue to scale up security, promising to give all moral and logistic support for security operatives to face the battle and register victory.

On the heels of the killings, authorities of the University of Jos have shut down the university ostensibly to avert a boil over from the student community.

Meanwhile the Governors’ forum has flayed the attacks in a statement issued by its Head, Media and Public Affairs, Mr Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, in Abuja on Sunday.

While describing it as barbaric and senseless,  it said that the killing had all the colourations of several others in which locals in particular parts of Nigeria had become inhospitable and unwelcoming to other Nigerians living in or passing through their domains.

“These dastardly actions of Nigeria’s once peaceful locals which have resulted in unwarranted and needless deaths diminish us all as a people and pulls our country down to the deepest recesses of the absence of civilisation.

“They also cause all kinds of reprisal killings and injurious interactions that does nobody any good.

“The Forum views with extreme disgust the horrible and thoughtless loss of precious lives and declare unequivocally that it must stop forthwith.”

The NGF called on the country’s security organisations to fish out all those involved and bring them forward to face the full wrath of the law to serve as a deterrent to those who are contemplating similar action.