Borno mosque blast: ‘Nigerian govt has failed woefully in protecting lives’ – PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has issued a stinging condemnation of the Christmas Eve bomb explosion in Borno State, accusing the Federal Government of failing in its fundamental duty to protect Nigerian citizens. In a statement released on Wednesday, December 24, 2025, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, expressed profound sympathy for the victims of the attack, which targeted worshippers at the Al-Adum Juma’at Mosque in Maiduguri’s busy Gamboru Market. The blast, which police confirmed killed at least five people and injured dozens more, struck during evening Maghrib prayers.

Ememobong characterized the tragedy as a grim indicator of the nation’s deteriorating security landscape, particularly within the North-East. “The news of an explosion in a mosque in Gamboru Market, Maiduguri, is a sad reminder of the rising insecurity that Nigerians are forced to live with daily,” he said. The opposition party argued that such events have become a regular occurrence, leaving citizens in a constant state of fear while the government appears unable to stem the tide of violence.

The PDP’s critique focused heavily on what it describes as the administration’s “woeful” failure to address systemic safety issues. Ememobong insisted that the primary mandate of any sovereign government is the preservation of life and property. “This is totally unacceptable. The irreducible minimum any government owes its people is protection. This administration has failed woefully and must act decisively instead of resorting to rhetoric,” he added, calling for a shift from official condolences to proactive security measures.

The party also warned that the frequent targeting of religious sites represents a direct assault on the nation’s social fabric. According to the PDP, such attacks threaten to undermine the peace and tolerance essential to Nigeria’s multi-religious identity. “We commiserate with the families who lost their loved ones in this senseless attack. No Nigerian should lose their life while worshiping God,” the statement noted, highlighting the vulnerability of places of worship during festive and religious gatherings.

In its final appeal, the opposition party urged both the federal and Borno State governments to significantly increase security deployments, especially during the current holiday period. The PDP maintained that the resurgence of suicide bombings in Maiduguri—a city that has enjoyed relative calm in recent years—demands an immediate and comprehensive review of current counter-insurgency strategies to prevent further loss of innocent lives