The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has launched an operation targeting notorious bridges and subways in the Central Business District (CBD), Maitama, and Wuse Districts of Abuja to ensure the safety of residents and protect public properties.
The Director, FCT Department of Development Control and Coordinator of the Taskforce, Mukhtar Galadima, said the Joint Task Force on City Sanitation, acting on directives from the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, conducted raids under key bridges connecting Women Affairs Ministry, Police headquarters, Court of Appeal, Federal Secretariat, and areas including Abia House tunnels, River Plate Park, National Mosque, and Yar’Adua Center.
According to him, the team also raided tunnels, Millennium and Chescon Parks, in Maitama, and Wuse, where informal activities are taking place, side by side with people of questionable character living under the facilities.
Galadima expressed concern over the disturbing sanitary conditions and the presence of individuals engaging in questionable activities, emphasizing the need for immediate measures to address the situation.
Galadima, who led the operation noted that the team discovered children under the age of 10 residing under one of the bridges.
He said: “The honourable FCT Minister directed that we should take necessary action, and today we are on a fact-finding mission, to know what is really happening under the bridges and subways. From today, we can come out with our plan of action on the next step to be taken.
“With what we have seen today, it is really unfortunate that these things are happening in the city, where informal activities are taking place under the bridges and subways, as well as people of questionable characters are living there. We met some under 10 year old kids under one of the bridges.
“Considering the issues of security and looking at these people residing under the bridges, it is of great concern to the FCT Administration, and we will not lay it low as we have to take it up immediately.
“We have to step up our action on combing and monitoring these facilities and activities taking place there.”
Also, the Secretary of the FCT Security Services Department’s Command and Control Centre, Dr. Peter Olumuji, highlighted residents’ concerns about criminal elements emerging from these areas to snatch belongings and rob unsuspecting victims and even people in their cars when they don’t wind up. Immediately they do this, they run into the bridges to hibernate.
“That is why we have decided to come and profile the canals and bridges within the capital cities, and what we have seen is so disturbing.
“We have all the security agencies represented here in this operation. We have the Nigerian Police, Civil Defense, the DSS, the NDLEA, Immigration, so what we will do now is to commence an effective clamp down on these criminal elements under the bridges,” he said.
During the operation, Olumuji revealed that three individuals were arrested for drug-related issues under the bridges. The suspects were said to have been handed over to the NDLEA for further investigation and profiling.
On the number of arrests made, Olumuji said: “We made three arrests under the bridges today and these arrests concern more drug related issues, and we have handed them over to the NDLEA for further investigation and profiling.”
The operation involved various security agencies, including the Nigerian Police, Civil Defense, DSS, NDLEA, and Immigration.
FCTA Task Force Reveals Pickpocket Hotspots In Abuja, Arrests Suspected Drug Peddlers is first published on The Whistler Newspaper