Muhammad Dingyadi, minister of police affairs, says the
gunmen who attacked the correctional facility in Kuje council area of the
federal capital territory (FCT), came with superior weapons.
The correctional facility was attacked on Tuesday night and
many inmates — including “all Boko Haram suspects” — escaped.
Speaking with journalists on Friday after a meeting with
President Muhammadu Buhari, Dingyadi said the gunmen came in numbers that
nobody anticipated.
The minister said those on duty at the facility tried their
best but were overpowered, adding that some of the attackers were killed.
“I want to assure you that all those who were supposed to
play a role in ensuring that the attack was neutralised did the best that they
could to neutralise it,” he said.
“I think what helped them was the number of people they came
with and the superior weapons that they came with. And because nobody
anticipated it, the few people who were there guarding the place could not
withstand the number that they came with. I think that was what happened.
“Mr. President was
deeply concerned about these developments, and he initiated this meeting to
enable security agencies, the service chiefs, inspector-general of police, to
brief the council on what actually happened and the way forward.
“We had a very successful meeting and the council has agreed
to take proactive measures that will ensure that repeat of what happened these
few days would not be witnessed anymore.”
The minister also said the president is surprised that what
happened in Kuje actually took place “in spite of all the security arrangements
that have been made to ensure that such an incident does not happen”.
Earlier, the president had expressed his disappointment with
the intelligence system over the attack.
Dingyadi, while assuring Nigerians, said the service chiefs
have been given clear directives to ensure that adequate measures are taken,
not only to investigate what happened, but also to take steps to forestall the
recurrence of such incidents.
“We call on Nigerians to continue to support the federal
government in its effort to ensure that we fight criminalities to the finish,
and to ensure that this country is brought back to normalcy in a more secure
and a more peaceful atmosphere,” he added.
Very disappointing statement from the minister to buhari himself. They have been working all along for this to happen. "They came in large numbers with superior weapons" is a statement from failed government and it's officials. What a shame indeed. A great government would have neutralize this long a go. A government not in league with these elements would have stopped these nuisance. Rather this government and it's officials have been tolorating them and has been encouraging them by not going after them.
ReplyDeleteBelow is a news items from this platform. Government should borrow a leaf from South Africa.
ReplyDeleteThree members of a gang who operated under the “Boko Haram” appellation have been jailed in South Africa.
Boko Haram, a terrorist organization in Nigeria, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions.
The convicts are Ndou Lukase Rembuluwani and Ndou Ben (both 29) and Khoza Ngobeni Small (28).
The Limpopo Division of the High Court in Polokwane sentenced them to combined 384-year imprisonment.
They were found guilty of crimes perpetrated between September and October 2017 around Seshego and Westenburg.
The charges included murder, attempted murder, possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition, and housebreaking with the intention to rob.
Other counts bordered on theft, robberies and malicious damage to property, The Citizen reported.
The trio were also convicted for contravening immigration laws for being in South Africa illegally.
The gang was among criminals who named themselves “Boko Haram” and terrorized communities in the Polokwane municipality.
They attacked teachers at their residential house in Westenburg and stole laptops, television sets and phones on October 9, 2017
Nine days afterwards, the muggers robbed Magezi Football Club players of their phones, soccer kit, shoes and clothes.
The police arrested Rembuluwan, Ben and Ngobeni a few days later during an operation in Seshego