From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The House of Representatives, yesterday, mandated the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, Nyesom Wike, to install Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) around the capital city and environs.
The House, which also resolved to invite Wike, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, and all the heads of security agencies for an emergency briefing over the security situation in Abuja, urged the government to deploy drones and other technologies to fight crime in the FCT.
Similarly, the parliament mandated the security chiefs to synergise, also set up special units to clampdown on criminals in the FCT. It also urged the security agencies to immediately deploy the National Identification Numbers (NIN) in curbing crimes across the country.
These followed the adoption of a motion by Dominic Okafor on the urgent need to curb the deteriorating security situation in the FCT.
Okafor, in his motion, expressed disappointment over the rising insecurity, noting that there were escalating cases of ‘one chance’ armed robberies, banditry and rampant kidnappings and killings. According to him, the security situation in Abuja is “unbefitting of a Federal Capital City,” where government agencies, and foreign institutions among others are domiciled.
“Since criminal elements in and around the Federal Capital Territory are speedily evolving from the norm to advanced techniques of criminality, the security agencies of government ought to urgently move to digitalize their operations to return the Federal Capital Territory to its safest haven in the country with the use of drones, closed- circuit televisions and other modern sophisticated security gadgets.
“The government of nearby Nasarawa State has announced plans to install security cameras across the state to curb the distressing security challenges in the state, which ought to be replicated in Abuja, because it is the centre of the nation and should be the safest place in the country.”
Okafor further stated that “the last administration, through the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, compulsorily registered and linked National Identification Numbers (NIN) with telephone numbers of Nigerians, and further linked the same with various bank accounts with the main purpose of curbing the rising spate of insecurity in the country.
“Since the compulsory registration and linking of the NIN by the Federal Government, there has never been a time it was deployed to tackle or address the pressing and scary state of insecurity in the Federal Capital Territory or the nation at large.”