Easter: Security alert at NNPC HQ • FG deploys soldiers •Defence building barricaded
The nation’s capital, Abuja, is on the alert over the possibility of an attack by the Boko Haram sect on sensitive installations in the city at Easter.
A week to the Easter celebration, the Federal Government on Sunday tightened security around the Defence Headquarters and the corporate headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in the Federal Capital Territory.
Armed soldiers from the Presidential Guard were deployed around the building known as the ‘NNPC Towers’ located on Herbert Macaulay Way, Central Business District in the FCT.
Security was also beefed up at the Defence Headquarters in Area 8, where a part of the carriageway was barricaded with concrete slabs. The same security measure was noticed at the Zone 7 Police Headquarters at Wuse, also in the FCT.
THE PUNCH learnt that the measures were taken as a result of an intelligence report that indicated that Boko Haram could be planning to attack the towers.
On Christmas Day last year, Boko Haram bombers attacked the St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, near the FCT, killing at least 44 worshippers.
Security was similarly beefed up around the NNPC Towers late last year, on the heels of fears that the building had been marked for attack by Boko Haram.
The increased security at the NNPC came on the heels of a plan by the police to issue an operational mandate to its officers during the Easter celebration.
The NNPC towers comprises four identical high-rise buildings of 13 floors each above the ground and three floors underground.
Our correspondents, who monitored the development, reported that more armed soldiers and riot policemen were deployed in the premises at about 11.35am on Sunday to join the array of security agents, including members of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, already on ground.
A truck marked NSR 229 XA was used to convey concrete barriers used in blocking a lane of the Herbert Macaulay Way directly in front of the building.
The truck was escorted by a military pick-up van with registration number NA 1496 B, bearing armed soldiers with the insignia of the Presidential Guard.
The road was cut off at the NNPC Bus Stop, forcing the diversion of traffic from the War College/International Conference Centre to Herbert Macaulay Way and Wuse to one-way at a U-turn opposite a branch of the First City Monument Bank located on the road.
Also, traffic from Wuse heading leftwards beside the NNPC Towers to link the National Mosque/Federal Secretariat road was also cut off.
The security lockdown caused traffic jam on the road on Sunday evening as road users on both sides of the road were rerouted to one side.
Incidentally, FCT residents on Sunday expressed fears that the situation might worsen the traffic situation and create panic in the city when work resumes on Monday (today).
Government had earlier stepped up security around the NNPC Towers, with the deployment of soldiers and sniffer dogs as well as intense searches of visitors, to forestall attacks.
The FCT Police Public Relations Officer, Moshood Jimoh, described the development as routine and part of general security measures to protect important facilities in the FCT.
On security arrangement for the Easter celebration, he said that measures had been put in place to protect places of worship, adding that an operational mandate detailing the nature of security operations would be issued on Monday (today).
“I don’t have the details of the operation mandate now; but they will be issued on Monday. We already have a security arrangement in place for the Easter celebration,” Jimoh stated.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defence has revoked 40 contracts awarded between 2003 and 2005 for non-performance.
The ministry’s outgoing Permanent Secretary, Mr. Linus Awute, while handing over to his successor, Prof. Nicholas Damachi, also said it had recovered billions of Naira from the affected contractors.
He noted that the ministry would no longer pay contractors for work not done.
He said, “Over 40 contracts were evaluated and revoked and funds running into billions of Naira have been recovered for the government.
“The contracts were awarded between 2003 and 2005 and they have some effect on the nation’s presence in the African Union Mission in Darfur (Sudan).
“Personnel increase was not commensurate with logistics, equipment and other items. So the contracts had to be evaluated and in some cases revoked.”