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By Philip Yatai and Monday Ijeh
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has directed the establishment of a Special Task Force to dislodge criminal elements hiding in uncompleted structures, abandoned plots of land, and buildings across the territory.
Mr Adamu Gwary, Director, Department of Security Services, FCT Administration, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Abuja.
Gwary explained that the measure was to curb miscreants’ menace and vandalize the government’s assets and infrastructure.
He said that the FCT Security Committee had identified uncompleted structures, abandoned plots of land, and buildings as some of the hibernating points for miscreants.
“So, the Commissioner of Police in FCT has been mandated to work with his colleagues to form a task team. They submitted the proposal on Tuesday to the Minister for financing the exercise, which will cover Panteka markets and locations where scavengers are hibernating.
“These included uncompleted and abandoned structures and any other location that intelligence revealed as a hibernating point for miscreants,” he said.
The director said that in the next two to three weeks, strategic efforts will be made to clear all criminal hideouts in FCT and other locations where they unleash their mayhem.
According to him, all uncompleted buildings, abandoned plots of land, and structures will be identified and cleared.
“This measure will ensure that criminal elements do not have a hiding place where they can organise to unleash their mayhem on our infrastructure or attack and rub residents.”
As directed by the Minister, Gwary said that the FCTA Land Department was conducting a census of undeveloped lands in the FCT.
He recalled that Wike had directed owners of undeveloped plots of land to develop their lands, or the allocation would be revoked.
He said that if implemented, the measure would significantly address security concerns relating to undeveloped plots of land, growing bushes, and serving as hideouts for criminals.
“So, the lands and other related departments are working assiduously on undeveloped plots of land that are causing security problems for us,” he said.
The director also revealed that the FCT Minister has directed the acting Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to take over all under bridges in the FCT.
“The Minister directed the acting FCDA boss to submit what it would take to secure all under bridges in the territory. The idea is to deny miscreants access to such locations, which they used as their hideouts,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Police Command in FCT said daily raids of identified criminal black spots in Abuja had commenced.
The Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, said in a statement that the effort was to combat criminal activities and protect public and private infrastructure in the territory.
