Abuja residents decry rising insecurity, demand urgent action

Residents of the FCT lament the rise in insecurity and demand immediate response

The frequency of kidnapping and robberies in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in recent years has alarmed some residents of the area.

Residents who talked with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday referred to the recent spike in insecurity in the FCT as scary, worrying, and intolerable.

In order to protect civilians from criminals, they encouraged security services and the FCT Administration to act quickly.

The attack occurred lately while his daughter travelled from Wuse to Gwagwalada, according to Mr. Joel Adewale, a public worker, who spoke to NAN.

Before being stripped of her possessions, he claimed she was driven to a desolate lane off Airport lane.

In order to transfer money to the girl’s account after it had been stolen using a PoS machine, Adewale said she was forced to phone him.

It was more akin to a kidnapping for ransom, but after paying N150,000, he was fortunate to get his daughter back.

The FCT’s rising incidence of insecurity, according to Mr. Joshua Orogun, the former president of the Abuja Newspapers Distributors Association, has been allowed to persist for more than 15 years.

“Despite the greatest efforts of the prior administrations, more must be done to protect the lives of the populace.

“I kindly request that the current administration take steps to deal with the unpleasant issue immediately.

“I specifically pleaded with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory to take action and come to our rescue by sending the required equipment to salvage the situation.

Our current predicament necessitates a sincere approach and ardent prayer, Orogun continued.

He claimed that one of his buddies, who also happened to be the chairman of a motor park in Area 10, was recently abducted in the Pyakasa area of Keti and had to pay a N1 million ransom before being freed.

“Everyone is now at the mercy of the perpetrators of these heinous crimes,” Orogun said, urging citizens to exercise extreme caution while conducting their lawful business.

Mr. Friday Odekina, a communication professional and another resident, attributed the rise in insecurity in the FCT to the growing population of people without a source of income.

He claims that there have been a threefold increase in the number of individuals without jobs moving to the city, some of whom have turned to crime to make ends meet.

In contrast to the master plan’s initial concentration on a specific group of people, “everyone is now allowed to be in Abuja.

They should be eliminated, according to me, if government is serious about combating the threat head-on, said Odekina, because they not only cause a nuisance but also terrorise the locals.

The degree of insecurity in the FCT, according to public servant Adeniyi Olajide, has also recently taken on a new dimension.

“A buddy of mine was abducted only around two weeks ago, and as of today, he is still held captive.

He was kidnapped, and the kidnappers demanded a ransom; however, after paying the payment, he hasn’t yet been released.

In order to stop illegal activity, he asked the FCT Administration to look within.

“The crooks are having a field day in the area. People now live in constant worry, particularly while trying to enter a taxi, painted or not, out of fear of the unknown.

He continued, “Just recently, a buddy of mine took a taxi from Lugbe to Wuse District just to be driven to Bwari and stripped of everything he had on him, including all the money in his bank accounts.

Another victim, a paramilitary employee who was kidnapped and robbed of all the money in his bank account, passed away from trauma.

One of the victim’s family members, who wished to remain anonymous, claimed that the victim came into contact with the thieves in early August when he got into a car on his way home from work.

The slain officer, according to the source, was robbed of sizable sums of cash that he had with him and that a friend had been holding.

According to him, the stress of figuring out how to give his friend his money back drove him into melancholy and ultimately caused his death.

On September 14, after the media outlet in Abuja that he worked for had closed its doors at around 6 o’clock, a journalist working for that outfit was also kidnapped.

The female journalist claimed that after boarding a taxi in Central Area towards Lugbe, four armed men took her to an abandoned building outside of the city.

She claims that the captors made her transfer the entire cash in her bank account, which was millions of naira.

They further forced her to phone her family and friends, who helped secure her release by paying a ransom of more than a million naira.

The reports of an increase in robberies, kidnappings, and other criminal activity in the territory were discounted by the FCT Police Command when contacted.

SP Josephine Adeh, the spokeswoman for the command, stated that the command is making every effort to protect the lives and property of the locals.

“It is untrue that “one chance’s” operations are expanding in the FCT as the command continues to put up effort to safeguard people and property.

Adeh stated, “We have stationed the proper resources and troops around the territory to find criminals and safeguard residents.

She advised locals to practise security awareness and provide the police and other security authorities with actionable intelligence reports to help them find and apprehend criminals.

“Since fighting crime is a team effort, locals must be cautious about where they board taxis because many of these criminals take advantage of such locations.

In order to educate the public on the tactics that criminals typically use to conduct their operations, the command has launched educational initiatives over time.

“Residents must play their part by making sure they board taxis in designated areas and be watchful of the passengers before boarding,” she continued.

The “one-chance” robbery syndicates in the city, according to the FCTA Task Force on City Sanitation, have come under heavy scrutiny.

In order to carry out their heinous crimes of kidnapping and taking away people’s property, the syndicates typically use unpainted cabs in illegal parking lots, according to Mr. Peter Olumuji, the Taskforce’s Secretary for Command and Control.

The team, according to Olumuji, was made up of the Nigerian Police, Civil Defence, Department of State Security, Immigration and Correctional Services, and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.

The Directorate of Road Traffic Service, Abuja Environmental Protection Board, Social Development Secretariat, and other pertinent FCT institutions were among the others, he claimed.

He continued by saying that the task team had been quite active in flushing out criminals from their hiding places who preyed on unsuspecting locals, usually at night.

He claims that the raid is a component of a comprehensive security effort to safeguard the safety and unrestricted movement of city residents.

“One chance” syndicates have been operating in several parts of the city, according to information we’ve been hearing.

The enforcement team is working nonstop to make sure that we raid any places that house “one chance” drivers, illegal motor parks, or unapproved parking spaces.

In addition to being a nuisance to the public, some beggars are also being employed by criminals to acquire intelligence, the speaker continued.

Mrs. Deborah Osho, Head of Operations, FCTA Directorate of Road Traffic Service, stated that the taskforce was also enforcing the restriction on the operation of motorcycles and tricycles because they pose a hazard to public safety.

The usage of motorcycles by criminals as a means of swiftly fleeing crime scenes was revealed by Osho.

They are also being utilised for a variety of illegal purposes, such as stealing valuables and cell phones from unwary bystanders.

She continued, “This is in addition to the growing number of fatalities from accidents involving Okada riders.”

The chief of operations stated that the commercial motorcycles had been classified as a “security threat” by security organisations, and they were to be kept off city streets.

To ensure their safety, Osho nevertheless recommended locals to avoid riding in okadas and using unpainted cabs. (NAN)