A FEDERAL CAPITAL UNDER SIEGE
Government should collaborate with our international partners to ensure the security and safety of all residents
On the surface, life is normal in Nigeria’s federal capital city Abuja, and environs. Vehicles are on the road. Government offices and banks are still open for business. Social events are still being held in many places. And worshippers are still trooping to churches and mosques. But beneath all these, there is a sense of fear by residents following terror alerts (to their citizens) from the United States embassy and the British High Commission. Further warnings from governments of Germany, Bulgaria, Ireland and Denmark have only heightened anxiety. On Thursday, Jabi Lake Mall, easily the biggest shopping complex in Abuja, closed indefinitely “in the interest of the safety of staff and customers” while at the weekend, some in-bound international flights witnessed cancellation disruptions.
We enjoin the federal government to take the situation more seriously than dismissing the terror alerts from these foreign embassies as mere scaremongering. To be forewarned as conventional wisdom teaches, is to be forearmed. When residents of the capital city of a country not only move around with a sense of foreboding but also feel uncertain about the capacity of the authorities to deal with such challenge, then there is a problem. Besides, when a country cannot guarantee the security of life and property for residents of its federal capital, foreigners have reasons to fear.
Even before these alerts from foreign diplomatic missions, there was always apprehension about the security situation in Abuja. In a September 2020 circular alerting residents on the existence of terror cells, the Nigeria Customs Service had written: “Information reaching the Comptroller General of Customs reveals the existence of Boko Haram terrorists in and around the FCT. Further reports have it that they are planning to attack some selected targets within the territory.”
Today in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), armed robbers operate within the city centre, including in highbrow areas like Maitama and Asokoro, and they have now been joined by kidnappers who abduct people in broad daylight. Yet, the strategic importance of Abuja not only as the seat of power but also the home to all foreign embassies and international agencies cannot be overemphasised. If, for any reason the city is considered unsafe for diplomats, then the conclusion would be that Nigeria is not safe.
Initially, the rising tide of insecurity within the FCT was confined to the satellite communities which are home to low-income earners. Angry youths bereft of opportunities across the country had been moving into communities like Kuje and Gwagwalada. But what started with occasional cases of opportunistic criminals robbing unsuspecting passengers inside commercial vehicles in those suburbs has since escalated into the emergence of terror cells. In August this year, Captain Attah Samuel and four other soldiers were killed when terrorists ambushed the Guards Brigade of the army during a patrol exercise within the FCT. A month earlier, there was an attack by the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) operatives on Kuje Prison in Abuja where hundreds of inmates (including their detained members) were let loose, after killing several people.
It is particularly noteworthy that the security alerts from foreign embassies are coming just a month after the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor warned that hundreds of terrorists arrested by security forces are yet to be investigated, processed or brought to trial. It remains curious that there should be tardiness in bringing terror subjects to justice. Even more curious is the fact that high value Nigerian terror sponsors that were identified by friendly countries like the United Arab Emirates are yet to be arrested or prosecuted.
It is in the normal expectation of the federal government to reassure Abuja populace about their safety. We cannot also deny the embassies of foreign countries their obligation to warn their nationals living in Nigeria of situations where their safety may be in jeopardy. Between these two extremes, the Nigerian state has a responsibility to ensure the safety of people living all over the country. And that obligation must not be left to conjecture. Collaborating with our international partners to guarantee the security and safety of Abuja residents is the irreducible challenge of this moment.
