Fct police commissioner Femi Ogunbayode
BY:
DAVID BARAU
The barricades along major highways in the
FCT mounted by security agencies against possible attack on government
institutions will soon be cleared.
The FCT commissioner of
police Mr, Femi Ogunbayode made this known during an interaction with members
of the fourth estate of the realm at the Nigerian Union of Journalist’s FCT
secretariat Utako recently Abuja.
CP
Ogunbayode said the recent terrorist attack on government institution and other
public places had made it imperative that such measures be adopted in order to
prevent further attacks in the system.
‘you know these things
(barricade) came into being as a result of the activities of suicide bombers,
they were there before I came and I have said one thing as time goes on we are
going to relax them and it will start from me’
He
reiterated that the current fight against terror in some states of the
federation has been successful and soon the barricades that hitherto narrowed
some roads in Federal capital will be removed.
Similarly
the FCT police Commissioner identified Apo, Lugbe and areas within the Kaura districts of the
FCT as flash points for car snatching and other criminal activities.
‘ we have been able to secure a
peaceful daytime at least the first twelve hours from 6am to 6pm but where we
have the challenges is from 6pm to 8.30pm when you have this menace of car
snatching and then from 12 midnight to 3am.’
The CP
attributed the high risk associated to this areas as a result of the over 120
housing estates which do not have perimeter fences and are mostly empty.
He
stated that the number of people relocating to the federal capital territory is
increasing on daily basis owning to the security challenges in the north and
other parts of the country thus making the police over stretch its resources. He urged private developers to ensure that
they built perimeter fences around their estates.
'If you
go to all these private estates, you will see that in an estate of 120 to 200
houses you will see that only 20 -30 people live there'
He decried the situation where by the
street were not named and security lights are not available.
‘Take for instance we get a phone
call from Nzube Estate by 12 midnight, we arrive there and there’s no one to
ask because there’s no perimeter fence and a security post, who will you ask
where there’s an incident by 12 midnight’
The CP commended the efforts of the
FCT administration towards the provision of over 75 vehicles to the FCT police
command and solicited for more to be done as the FCT population is growing
rapidly.
On the issue of persons parading
themselves as journalists, CP Ogunbayode said he would cooperate with the NUJ
FCT chairman Comrade Chucks Eherim and the committee inaugurated to arrest fake
journalists who have been putting the image of the Nigerian press in bad light.
‘This is about the easiest task, you
don’t need to go and find them, arrange a press conference they will come
invite the police we will come lock up the venue and everyone should identify
his/her medium’
The interactive session provided an
avenue for members of the press to relax with the police a scenario which
hitherto spelt trouble
