By Esther Yakubu
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed immense grief on the boat mishap in Tijana village of Munya Local Government Area of Niger State and extended his heartfelt sympathies to the families of the dead and the injured.
Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu in a statement on Monday quoted the President saying, this incident is more disheartening as some of the victims were reportedly Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
Commending the life-saving work of the first responders and local divers at the scene of the incident, the President wished the wounded a speedy recovery and success on the search and rescue of some missing passengers on the capsized boat.
President Buhari called on the transportation authorities to ensure strict adherence to safety regulations on the nation’s waterways and urged that lessons from this accident should help prevent a future occurrence.
He assured residents of Niger State that restoring long term stability and peace is a core objective of the Federal Government working with the State government and other critical stakeholders in the local communities.