By New Citizen
The police in Sokoto have arrested two students of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, in connection to the killing on Thursday of Deborah Samuel, a student of the college who was reported to have commited blasphemy against Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) in a WhatsApp platform.
A statement by State Police Command’s Pulic Relations Officer, ASP Sanusi Abubakar, gave details of how the female student was seized from the school authority and burnt to death, adding that the college has been shut.
The statement said: “At about 0900hrs, a distress call was received from Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, stating that students were rioting over one female student named Deborah Samuel, a level two student who was accused of making a social media post that blasphemed the holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
“Students forcefully removed the victim from the security room where she was hidden by the school authorities, killed her and burnt the building.
“The students banded together with miscreants and barricaded the Sokoto/Jega road.
“Upon receiving the information, the DC Operations led a team of policemen and all other operational commanders in the state to the school where the road was cleared and the situation was brought under control.
“Two students were arrested in connection with the crime committed.
“The school has been closed down by the school authority, and policemen were deployed to give tight security coverage.
“The Commissioner of Police, Sokoto State Command, CP Kamaldeen kola Okunlola fdc, mnim, is appealing to members of the public to go about their lawful activities and should not panic as the situation is under control.
“Meanwhile, the suspects in the viral video on Twitter were spotted and will be nailed soon.”
The Sokoto State government has also ordered a probe into the killing.
Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal directed the Ministry of Higher Education and other relevant agencies to commence investigation into the killing after ordering the closure of the institution indefinitely.
Addressing a news conference, the state’s Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Isa Bajini-Galadunci, said Tambuwal has urged citizens to remain calm and law-abiding, assuring them that appropriate action would be taken after the investigation.
In their reaction, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, and the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, have condemned the killing, urging the authorities to arrest and prosecute the perpetrators.
In a press statement released by the Sultanate Secretary, Sa’idu Muhammad Maccido (Danburam of Sokoto) hours after the incident, the sultan described the act as “unjustifiable”.
He said: “The Sultanate Council has learnt with dismay the unfortunate happening at the Shehu Shagari College of Education (SSCOE), Sokoto, that led to the loss of life of a female student of the institution. We condemn the incident in its totality and urged the security agencies to bring perpetrators of the unjustifiable incident to justice.”
He called for calm and peaceful coexistence among all people of the state in particular and the nation at large.
Also in a separate statement, Bishop Kukah expressed sadness over the killing and called on the relevant authorities to fish out the perpetrators without delay and punish them according to the law of the country.
Kukah argued that the matter must be treated as a criminal case.
He wrote: “I have received with deep shock the incident that occured in the Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto State, leading to the gruesome murder of Miss Deborah Yakubu, a 200-level Home Economics student, today.
“We condemn this incident in the strongest terms and call on the authorities to investigate this tragedy and ensure that all the culprits are brought to book.
“The only obligation that is owed her immediate family, her fellow students and the school authority is the assurance that those who are guilty of this inhuman act, no matter their motivation, are punished according to the law of the land.
“Christians have lived peacefully with their Muslim neighbours in Sokoto over the years. This matter must be treated as a criminal act and the law must take its cause.”
