Kaduna State Governor, Mukhtar Ramalan Yero yesterday abandoned a scheduled official assignment in the United States and returned to the country over the deadly attacks on communities in Kaura Local Government Area of the state.
The Governor was already in the United Kingdom enroute the United States to attend a symposium on peace and security in Northern Nigeria, organized by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP).
Governor Yero was billed to address the conference on the security challenges in the North and Kaduna State in particular, but had to make a u-turn back to Nigeria on receiving the sad news that some hoodlums have attacked villages in Kaduna and killed many innocent citizens.
Our correspondent reports that the Governor departed Nigeria Friday morning only to return Saturday without attending the USIP conference after attackers invaded Kaura villages on Friday night and killed dozens of people.
The symposium organized by the USIP is to have attendance of governors from Northern states that are facing security and economic challenges as well as lawmakers and investors from the US and Europe. The aim of the event is to seek collaborative solutions to improving security as well as economic development of the North.
Meanwhile, the Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) has carried out an assessment of the communities affected and victims with a view to commence the process of providing relief to victims of the attacks, who are presently displaced from their homes.
In the meantime, the Kaduna State Government has called on people in the entire state to remain calm and to shun rumors capable of escalating tension in the state. This was disclosed by Ahmed Maiyaki in a chat with Journalists in Kaduna, according to him, the State Government had taken adequate measures to safeguard the lives and properties of the entire state. Maiyaki then urged citizens to go about their lawful businesses as Security agencies are already on alert to maintain law and order in all parts of the state.