President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday asked Nigerians not to panic following what was described as the first suicide bombing recorded in Nigeria, saying the ugly situation, which has become a global phenomenon, will soon be over.
The President, who was formally reacting to the twin bomb blasts that rocked the Force Headquarters, Abuja, also said the Inspector General of Police, Hafiz Ringim, was not necessarily the target as many are made to believe, explaining that everybody at the top could be a target, even the President.
President Jonathan, who looked pensive, arrived the Louis Edet House Police Headquarters at about 12.07 pm and departed at about 12.20 pm.
He was received by the IG who conducted him round the affected areas.
Jonathan, who took time to respond to questions from newsmen, commiserated with the families of the victims of the bomb blasts.
The President said although the country is having its own share of the global phenomenon now, it would soon be over. He therefore urged Nigerians not to panic.
"First and foremost, let me commiserate with those people who lost their lives and property. Some vehicles were burnt and some people must have been victims of the explosion. Let me use this opportunity to assure Nigerians that it happens all over the world; no country is free.
"Nigeria has also been having some ugly incidents lately, but surely we will get over them. People should not panic at all. Soon, most of these things will become a thing of the past," he said.
On the possibility of the IG being the target of the attack, the President said no emphatically, adding: "It is not just the IG. Everybody is a target of terrorists’ attacks.
‘’I don’t want to make reference to what happened in the United States where they were to crash a plane into the White House. So, terrorists will aim at the top. If they can bomb the President, they will do it," he further said.
A few minutes after the President departed the scene, a woman came to ascertain the fate of her husband, who she said told her he was going to the Force Headquarters on the day of the incident.
According to the woman, she had not heard from him since then.
With the assistance of some police officers who took her through the affected areas, the woman was able to identify her husband’s burnt car.
At that point, she burst into tears as she ransacked the car to be sure it was her husband’s.
Her husband, whose identity could not be ascertained at press time, recently retired from the Navy.
The woman was able to identify some Christian pamphlets and leaflets which she said were regularly in her husband’s car.
The car, a Mercedes Benz V-Boot, has a Lagos number plate - FE 748 AAA. From its position, it is obvious that the occupant was in the process of parking the car at the parking lot when the bomb blasts occurred.
