The bombing of Nyanya, a few kilometers from Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, twice within two weeks, clearly demonstrates that the Jonathan administration is failing in discharging one of its cardinal duties-the protection of lives and property. The nation is under siege from incessant attacks by insurgents but the government seems incapable of providing an answer to this onslaught and security debacle.
After the first attack on April 14, soldiers were drafted to mount surveillance and search commuters along the busy highway. That measure created a huge traffic gridlock and severe pains to those who ply the route. The soldiers had to withdraw to the barracks and everyone continued with business as usual. But the nation’s security apparatus also went to sleep or so it seems until the second bomb exploded at the same vicinity on May Day. While sympathizing with those who lost relations and property in these dastardly acts, we must interrogate government’s policy and posture on security matters.
There seems to be no clue or there is the absence of commitment on how to keep our cities and towns safe from the bombers. For instance, it is mind-boggling to discover that N76 billion invested by the federal government in installing Closed Circuit Television cameras to aid crime detection and prevention in Abuja, Lagos and a few other cities may have gone down the drain in just two years. Reports in the media indicate that most of the cameras for the CCTV in Abuja metropolis have been vandalized or stolen. It is more disturbing that both the police high command, the supposed beneficiary and operators of the device, and the Federal Capital Territory Administration have denied responsibility for the safety of CCTV cameras installed around the Federal Capital to provide a secure and independent multimedia communications system for the police and other security agencies.
The project, with laudable intentions, was meant to provide voice, video and data using the Code Division Multiple Access technology that will assist security agencies to combat terrorism and all violent crimes in the FCT, Lagos and a few other cities across the country. The job was handled by a Chinese firm, ZTE Corporation, and was reportedly completed in 2012. The contracting firm actually claimed that every aspect of the project was tested and handed over to the government. Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo had inspected some components of the scheme at the Police Force Headquarters and expressed satisfaction with the operation of the new security platform. So, what has happened to this beautiful idea within two years?
Like most laudable government projects, the CCTV monitoring scheme has been left to rot. Findings revealed that the Video Surveillance Cameras Monitor and the Video Conference Terminal at the Police Headquarters, Abuja main switch centre is dormant due to lack of video feed from installed but non- functioning cameras. Owing to the Nigerian factor, valuable components of the street cameras have been stolen; many have been crushed by reckless drivers. While the equipment are lying idle, those responsible for its operation and maintenance are folding their arms; institutions are passing the buck while the country is terrorized by insurgents, kidnappers and armed bandits.
In the first place, why is it difficult for government officials to think through such money guzzling projects and plan properly? Are we lacking in skills and knowledge to manage simple street surveillance cameras? If so, why is it difficult to train the personnel to manage such or simply seek help from abroad?
The decision to keep workers and school children at home during the World Economic Forum in Abuja is jejune and foolish. A focused and proactive leader requires more sophisticated solutions to issues of security and free movement of citizens.
