Professor Abubakar Njodi, the Vice Chancellor, University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), says the university will not close over killing of a professor and four others by a suspected Boko Haram suicide bomber.
Njodi spoke on Monday in Maiduguri, when Maj.-Gen. Lucky Irabor, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole of the Nigerian Army paid him a sympathy visit.
He said: “I can convince the senate, the management and the university community to close the school to save lives.
“But if we do that, we are not helping because we have to give the security our maximum support and our support is not to join them in the battle field.
“If we run away, that means there is nobody they should be fighting for. We should stay and resolve it, after all the war is about us, western education.
“If we stay, the terrorists will be frustrated because that is their aim.
“What is the point of fighting for us if we run? We should stand our ground so that the military will be proud that the people they are fighting for are on ground.
“Therefore, our decision is not to close the university. We want to assure you our theatre commander, the university remains open and we will continue with our examinations tomorrow.
“We suspended the exams for today because we want the military to come and access what happened,” Njodi said.
He, however, appealed to the military to beef up security in the outskirts of the university to forestall future occurrence.
In his remark, Irabor said: “As we have already said and will continue to say, there is frustration in the Boko Haram camp.
“They have tried severally to bring sorrows and pain to the university and the rest of the communities and have failed.
“We, therefore, enjoin you not to be deterred. This is a clear sign that the end of Boko Haram has come.
“The people should, therefore, continue with their normal life to let the Boko Haram know they have failed.
“We should let them know that the extent of their stupidity and callousness do not have any impact on us anymore”.
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