Nigeria Procures Six More Attack Helicopters to Combat Terrorists

 

Nigeria’s federal government has procured six more attack helicopters to enhance the fight against insecurity, just as four more of the remaining 43 kidnapped Kaduna-bound train passengers abducted in the attack by terrorists on March 28, 2022, have been released, leaving 39 victims still in captivity.

Chief Executive Officer of TUSAS, a Turkish aircraft manufacturer, Mr Temel Kotil, on Monday, announced the sale of six T-129 attack helicopters, to Nigeria.

The announcement followed a deal reached with the company by the federal government.

Kotil, who made the announcement on his Twitter handle, however, hinted at the development on CNN Turk.

President Tayipp Edorgan of Turkey recently visited Nigeria and this development may not be unconnected to the visit.

The federal government had recently procured A-29 Super Tucano fighter jets from the United States, even as it had also made similar procurements from Russia and other European countries as the war against insurgency intensifies..

Meanwhile, families of the abducted train passengers, on Monday, laid siege to the federal Ministry of Transportation, and consequently grounded activities.

The families hinted that they were at the ministry to find out what the government had been doing to rescue the remaining passengers abducted over four months ago.

One of the family members, Imran Ahmed, whose brother has been in captivity, said they had lost faith in the government’s commitment to rescuing their loved ones.

“We don’t have confidence in the federal government. This is not the first time the federal government is saying they are on top of the situation. If I remember, I have seen the president’s directives on four occasions, directing the security chiefs that they should do whatever is necessary to rescue our family members.

“But you can imagine, today is 121 days that they have been in captivity. This has been very gruesome for family members. Nigerians should understand that we are not here to see the minister. We are here to get our family members from the ministry that they boarded the train to Kaduna,” he said.

In the same vein, Hadiza Mohammad, said it was unfair that after 121 days, the federal government, has not found any meaningful ways of rescuing the remaining victims, and wondered why the people in government, especially, the wife of the president, Aisha Buhari, had remained silent.

Also, Aisha Musa, mother of one of the abductees, Hafsat Abdullahi, who is being held captive with her two-year-old child, narrated her ordeal.

“When her children saw the video yesterday, the first son fainted. Now he is in the hospital. When this thing happened, we thought she was dead. We did not hear from them since they said they killed some. We went to Forty-four hospital in Kaduna. They gave us a list of those who were dead and accident victims. She was not among the corpses in the mortuary,” she said.

According to her, It was two days later that the abductors called her husband and spoke to her. That was the day we heard their voices last till today.

At about 11:45 am, the Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, came to address the protesters, and said he had just resumed office and would require sometime to address the issue.

The minister also requested for the contacts of the affected families and promised to be in communication with them henceforth.

Sambo, while speaking further, said, “My first intention was to hold a dialogue with you and empathise with you. The government is made up of individuals. We have families. We feel for the families of this unfortunate incident.

“I want to tell you, please, give me the opportunity, let me resume in this office. This will be the first matter I am going to tackle by the grace of God. I have asked God to guide me, to lead me in this assignment, and I know God will not fail me and God will not fail Nigeria. You have been very patient. The government itself has not been sleeping from enquiries I have made.

“I took time to come here this morning, because I wanted to get in touch with the right people, who have been handling this issue. There are some things you don’t say in public. I’m sure you appreciate that. But I want to beg for one thing: I have just resumed and I’m going to receive the necessary briefings this morning. I want you to give me time.

“In the meantime, I want contact names and addresses. If you have a formal association with telephone numbers that I can reach, I can assure you that we are going to be in constant engagement until this matter is sorted out, until every single person in captivity goes back home to his family members.”

Military Beefs Up Security Around Bwari Campus Law School, FG Closes FGC, Kwali

The Nigeria Army, has tightened security around the Nigerian Law School, Bwari Campus, Abuja, in the wake of the increasing wave of insecurity that pervaded the FCT over the weekend.

This development followed directives by the FCT Education Secretariat and the FCT All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (FCT -ANCOPSS) that no school in the FCT should open tomorrow, July, 27, 2022.

Heavily armed soldiers were observed assuming strategic positions around the Law School on Sunday evening as a precautionary security measure in the light of the sporadic shooting over the weekend at Sheda Village by suspected bandits that prompted the Federal Ministry of Education to order the immediate closure of the Federal Government College, Kwali, FCT.

The development created panic which prompted security to be beefed up in other unity schools in Bwari, Apo, Rubochi and Abaji. As a result of the development, many fear-stricken parents have been rushing to the schools to withdraw their wards from the boarding schools.

In the same vein, the FCT ANCOPSS has directed that no school in the FCT should open tomorrow, July 27 in compliance with the directive of the FCT UBEB Management that all Junior Secondary schools must finish exams today, July, 26, 2022.

To that effect, the announcer, Secretary, FCT ANCOPSS, said subject teachers were to use CAs to complete the theory or essay parts of the exams as only objective questions should be administered. He said no school should open on Wednesday, 27th July, 2022.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, who ordered the closure of Federal Government College, Kwali, said the closure became necessary following security breach on Sheda and Lambata Villages, suburbs of Kwali Area Council which also threatened FGC Kwali.

The unity college is located in Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

In a statement by the director of media and public relations, Mr. Ben Bem Goong, the minister said the timely intervention of security Agencies saved the situation, adding that the minister also gave a directive for arrangements to be made for final year students to conclude their NECO examinations.

“The Minister has also directed principals of Unity Colleges across the country to liaise with security agencies within their jurisdictions inorder to forestall any security breach in our schools,” he said.

 

Terrorists Wound Three Soldiers in Abuja

The Brigade of Guards charged with the security of President Muhammadu Buhari, his family and the nation’s capital, confirmed yesterday that three soldiers were wounded during an ambush by terrorists along Kubwa-Bwari Road in the outskirts of the city.

Spokesperson of the Guards Brigade, Captain Godfrey Anebi Abakpa, said the soldiers were ambushed along the Kubwa-Bwari Road, adding that, three soldiers were wounded and and hospitalised while the attack was repelled.

“Troops on routine patrol along Kubwa–Bwari were ambushed by suspected terrorists. Three soldiers were injured during the attack. The soldiers have been evacuated for medical attention,” he said.

Abakpa said the ambush occurred within the general area of Bwari, which showed that the terrorists were within the location and possibly preparing to carry out their plans to attack the law school in Bwari.

Following the attack on Kuje Prison by terror group, Boko Haram, Defence Headquarters (DHQ), last week, allayed fears of another impending attack by terrorists in Abuja.

The Brigade of Guards had also set up a board of inquiry to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the attack and the involvement or otherwise of soldiers posted in the Kuje Correctional Center on the day of the attack.

The Federal Capital Territory Command of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) had issued a security alert of a planned terror attack on churches, schools and public infrastructure.

Another anonymous alert, patterned after standard security alerts, which had trended on social media also indicated that there were sightings of influx of unknown persons over time, around Karshi Hills and Orozo, in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC).

It said some persons were seen regularly and clandestinely going up the hills around Navy Town Estate, thus raising high suspicion that the invaders were massing up in camps within the hills, which also connect to other adjoining forests within the FCT and Nassarawa State.

The alert said the terrorists planned to attack educational institutions located in the area. But the Director, Defence Information (DDI), Maj Gen Jimmy Akpor, said security agencies were at alert and determined to contain any security threats to the seat of power.

“Security agencies are not sleeping. They are doing what needs to be done to keep the place safe. A lot of things are being done. Measures have been put in place. Of all the security agencies, none is sleeping,” he said.

On the intelligence alert of an impending attack making the rounds, he said expectations were that the citizenry would provide available information to security forces and not circulate such on social media.

Chuks Okocha, Kingsley Nwezeh, Olawale Ajimotokan, Kasim Sumaina, Kuni Tyessi in Abuja, Francis Sardauna in Katsina.