The Federal Government on Friday expressed concern over the ability of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) operating in Borno state to fire rockets targeting areas in Maiduguri, the state capital.
The Federal Government also said that there is no cause for alarm over the alleged leaked memo where security intelligence revealed that terrorists have planned to attack the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, within the festive period.
This is as the Inspector General of Police, IGP, Alkali Baba Usman has said that the nature of criminality in the Southeast is responsible for the high presence of police on the roads.
Recall that hours before the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari in Maiduguri, Borno State, on Thursday, multiple explosions rocked the capital with rockets landing on many houses around Ngomari, Bulumkutu and Ayafe near the airport.
This reportedly forced a massive deployment of troops to battle with ISWAP elements and to foil the attack by the terrorists.
Fielding questions from State House Correspondents after a security council meeting presided by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on the attack, IGP Usman, said the ability of the terrorists to land rockets is concerning.
He said the terrorists were however unable to achieve their objectives with the rocket launch on Thursday.
Flanked by the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the IGP said, “They are launching it in major towns, they are launching it in Maiduguri. It is a concern. And it has been seriously checkmated. There are efforts to continuously checkmate it.
“What they have done yesterday (Thursday), yes, they have done it, but to a large extent, they have not achieved what they have intended to achieve because of the situation the security agencies particularly the military put in place.”
On whether the security agencies have been able to determine the origins of the rockets, the IGP said it had been done before and after the firing incident occurred.
He said, “Yes, it had been done before and even after. Some of those who must have planned and thrown those rockets have been taken out.”
The IGP said that the security agencies are trying to improve on what they are already doing “to ensure there is peace, law and order during the Yuletide period and beyond.”
He reiterated President Buhari’s marching orders to security agencies, which he said are always the same.
Explaining, Baba said: “The marching orders are always the same, you have even told Nigerians the marching orders of the President. It has always been the same. There is no space, there is no tolerance to any threat to security. There is no sparing of any terrorists and there must be an intelligence gathering, there must be proactive prevention of crime and there must be checkmating of all those that are involved in criminal activities, whether it be terrorism, banditry or armed robbery or whatever and that is what we are trying to do to the best of our knowledge and ability.”
The IGP explained the preponderance of security personnel in the southeast saying that the deployment of agents to areas depends on the nature-society.
There has been lamentation in the Southeast over the alleged harassment and extortion at different checkpoints by the security agencies on the roads.
Answering the question of whether there was special interest in the area that has made the security agencies flood the area with personnel in virtually every 500 meters even in the midst of increasing rate of banditry in some parts of the North, the IGP said that it was the problem of having many people in small areas.
He said: “Where there are more people you have the problem policing than where you don’t have. What we have in some of the states is a big landmass without actually having too many people.
“In some spaces, we have too many people in a small place. That means there is human interaction and you need to have to police there much more than what you have where you don’t have that number of population.”
The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, who led the briefing on the outcome of the security meeting, assured that there is no threat to safety and security in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Asked about the leaked memo of planned terrorist attack, Aregbesola said: “Abuja is secure and very safe. If there was a leak, as you mentioned, it could just be an operational alert that does not require any worry or concern. The Council has mandated us to assure Nigerians of the safety of their security and enduring peace for the period of the festivities.”
The minister said the council had asked them to assure Nigerians that measures are in place to ensure their safety during the Christmas season and beyond.
“The message of the Security Council, through you to Nigerians, is that all measures for the safety and security of the Nigerian people and Nigeria are in place for a successful and happy celebration of the yuletide and the New Year,” he stated.