Insecurity: FCTA Combs Bushes, Hideouts for Criminals

By: Wisdom Acka

To ensure the safety of lives and property of all FCT residents, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has continued to comb every likely hideout for criminals in the nation’s capital.

This is as the FCTA Joint Taskforce on City Sanitation, on Monday stormed and raided subways and bridges around the three Arms zone, especially roads connecting Women Affairs Ministry, Police headquarters, Court of Appeal and the Federal Secretariat.

The team also raided tunnels and green areas by Abia House, connecting River Plate Park through National Mosque and Yar’Adua Center, including Millennium and Chescon Parks, in Maitama, and Wuse, where informal activities are taking place, side by side with people of questionable characters living under the facilities.

Coordinator of the Taskforce, Mukhtar Galadima, who led the operation, explained that it was pursuant to the directive of the FCT Minister, following complaints from residents in the city, alleging the misuse and abuse of such facilities.

Galadima, also Director, FCTA Department of Development Control, described the sanitary condition in the affected facilities as very disturbing, thereby, requiring immediate and drastic measures for mitigation.

His words:”The Minister has 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 years kids under one the bridges,” he said.

“Considering the issues of security and looking at the 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,” Galadima added.