Police Deploy Personnel in FCT Borders to Forestall Bandits’ Incursion

•DSS debunks alleged planned invasion of Lagos, Port Harcourt, Ilorin

Chuks Okocha and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

Following fears of an alleged impending invasion of Abuja by terrorists and armed bandits, the Federal Capital Territory Police Command (FCT) yesterday ordered the deployment of personnel in the borders with contiguous states even as it pushed back against messages circulating on social media of an alleged attack on the University of Abuja by armed criminals.

In the same vein, the Department of State Services (DSS) yesterday described it as false, circulating messages of an impending invasion of Lagos, Port Harcourt and Ilorin by the terrorist group, Boko Haram.

Panic had gripped FCT residents following the declaration by the Niger State Governor, Mr. Sani Bello, that Boko Haram had sacked 50 villages in the state and that the terror group had hoisted a flag in the state.

He said Abuja, a two-hour drive from the state, was not safe as well, a position that created panic in the nation’s capital.

But a statement signed by the spokesperson of the FCT Police Command, ASP Yusuf Mariam, said the seat of power was safe.

It said the command had deployed personnel to FCT borders with other states.

“The FCT Police Command wishes to reassure residents of adequate protection of lives and property in the Federal Capital Territory.

“Therefore, the Commissioner of Police, CP Bala Ciroma, has deployed overt and covert strategies to curb banditry and criminal activities particularly on the borders of the territory.

“In addition, the commissioner of police has launched an advance collaborative approach to address the security concerns. On this note, we wish to reaffirm our undeterred resolve towards the protection of lives and property within the Federal Capital Territory,” it said even as it implored residents to report all suspicious movements, emergency or distress, through police numbers.

In an earlier statement, the FCT police command debunked another circulating message that University of Abuja was attacked by armed bandits on Tuesday night.

The separate statement said the University of Abuja was not attacked by armed bandits.

It said the Commissioner of Police, Ciroma, had ordered uninterrupted patrols around schools within the FCT.

Meanwhile, the DSS has debunked claims that there were plans by terrorists to invade Lagos, Port Harcourt and Ilorin.

In a short statement, the spokesman of the DSS, Dr. Peter Afunanya, said the message was false.

Buhari, APC Insensitive, Says PDP

In a related development, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday said the silence by President Muhammadu Buhari in the face of terrorist occupation, mass killings, kidnapping, acts of banditry and escalated insecurity enveloping all parts of the nation were ominous and had further confirmed Buhari as “a lame duck president.”

The party lamented that the decision by Buhari to recede into the comfort and safety of Aso Presidential Villa and kept silent while the nation burns had worsened the situation and emboldened terrorist elements to unleash more violence on the nation.

In a statement issued yesterday by the National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, the party said due to the incompetence, divisiveness and insensitivity of the presidency, violence, killings, bloodletting and a gripping reign of terror had seized all parts of the country, adding that there was no hope in sight.

PDP said it was a mark of failure that the presidency and the APC appeared unconcerned as terrorists and bandits took control of various parts of the country and even hoisted their flags in Shiroro, Niger State.

The main opposition party accused the ruling party of being only interested in its 2023 power-grabbing plot.

The party urged Nigerians to note how an APC Senator, Smart Adeyemi, who dared to speak out against the failure of Buhari on the floor of the Senate, was reprimanded by Senator Remi Tinubu, who reminded him that he was not a member of the PDP and should not show concern for the ugly situation in our country.

PDP said: “From the comment of Senator Tinubu, it is instructive to note that the APC and their leaders had turned their backs on Nigerians and that it is only the senators, members and other leaders elected on the platform of the PDP that are concerned about the plight of citizens at this critical time.”