The incident happened on Sunday, June 5, 2022, when gunmen with explosives stormed St. Francis Catholic church, Owo, in Ondo State in Southwest , Nigeria, located about 200 meters from the palace of the Olowo of Owo and opened fire on  Sunday, killing “many” worshippers and wounding others.

The violence at St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo town in Ondo State erupted during the morning service in a rare attack in the southwest of Nigeria, where jihadists and criminal gangs operate in other regions.

Reports say about 25 worshipers have been confirmed dead while many others are still receiving treatment from injuries sustained from gunshots.

No group has, however, claimed responsibility.

Reacting to the sad development, the former Anambra state Governor said the killing confirmed his position that Nigeria is fast becoming a failed country.

He urged every Nigerian to come together and form a formidable force to wrest the country from the impending precipice.

Obi said, “What happened in Owo today again adds to my position that our country is fast becoming a failed state. All must now join hands in saving our country from this existential situation we find ourselves in today.”

The presidential aspirant thereby called on both the Ondo State Government and Federal Government to spare no effort in ensuring that the perpetrators of the wanton act are made to face justice.

“I sympathise with the victims’ families, the Catholic Diocese of Ondo, the people and the Government of Ondo State. I urge the Federal Government and Ondo State Government to do whatever is possible to ensure that perpetrators of the dastardly act are brought to book. -PO.”

Buhari also mourned and condoled with the families, the Catholic Church, the government and people of Ondo state, charging all the emergency agencies to swing into action and provide relief to the wounded.

AFP reports that Pope Francis said in a statement he had learned of the “death of dozens of faithful”, many children, during the celebration of the Christian holiday of the Pentecost.

“While the details of the incident are being clarified, Pope Francis prays for the victims and for the country,” he said.

Attacks on religious sites are particularly sensitive in Nigeria where tensions sometimes flare between communities in a country with a mostly Christian south and a predominantly Muslim north.

Gun and bomb attacks are rare in Ondo state, but Nigeria’s military is battling a 12-year-old jihadist insurgency in the northeast, gangs in the northwest and separatist agitation in the southeast.

Boko Haram jihadist group in the northeast targeted churches in the past as part of Nigeria’s conflict that has killed 40,000 and displaced 2 million more.

Kidnapping assaults are common in most parts of Nigeria but mass gun attacks like Sunday’s violence are rare in the country’s relatively peaceful southwest.

Ondo state governor Rotimi Akeredolu said Sunday’s attack was a “vile and satanic attack” and appealed to the security forces to track down the assailants.

The attack comes a day before the ruling APC party starts primaries for its candidate in the 2023 election to replace Buhari, a former army commander who steps down after two terms in office.

Security will be a major challenge for whoever wins the race to govern Africa’s most populous country and the continent’s largest economy.

Parts of northwest and north-central Nigeria in particular have been increasingly plagued by heavily armed gangs who raid villages and target communities and schools for mass kidnapping attacks.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued on Sunday by the Ondo State Police Command Spokesperson, Funmilayo Odunlami, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Oyeyemi Oyediran, disclosed that he has deployed officers of the Explosive Ordinance Device Unit. (anti-bomb Squad) to the scene of the explosion in Owo Local Government Area of the state.