U.S., Israeli Anti-Terrorist Squads Besiege Abuja for Inauguration

Leadership (Abuja)

George Agba

24 May 2011

Anti-terrorist experts and security operatives from the United States of America and Israel have besieged Abuja ahead of President Goodluck Jonathan’s inauguration on Sunday, May 29, in a bid to pre-empt any recurrence of bomb scare and acts of terrorism aimed at undermining security in the country.This is even as the federal government is said to have allotted the sum of $10 million for security during the inauguration ceremony. Government’s decision to ensure heavy security presence for the event, unlike past presidential inaugurations, is coming on the heels of security alert by some agencies of government said to be working on counter- terrorism theories that they had uncovered a plot to foil the inauguration of President Jonathan on Sunday.

LEADERSHIP gathered reliably that a combined team of Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), made up mostly of anti-terrorism and bomb experts, have arrived the country to work in conjunction with their counterparts in the Nigeria Police Force.

The police, it was also gathered, have concluded plans to deploy 5,000 of its men in Abuja metropolis alone to complement over 37,000 officers in the FCT Police Command.

Besides, officials of the State House Special Force sent to Israel, where they underwent serious security training are said to have arrived in the country, fully prepared to work closely with their foreign counterparts.

When our correspondent visited the Eagle Square, venue of the presidential inauguration, yesterday, fierce-looking armed military personnel and mobile policemen were seen everywhere, around the area, preventing people including civil servants from entering or sauntering within 100 metres of the place.

Preparations for the ceremony are said to have commenced in full gear. When LEADERSHIP’s photo editor Mr. Chris Danladi, attempted to get close to the Eagle Square to take shots of decorations for the event said to be handled by a Chinese firm, he was accosted by armed policemen who seized his camera.

His camera was returned to him after he had identified himself and pleaded that he was a photojournalist who was only discharging his duty. LEADERSHIP learnt that, earlier, a photographer from a media organisation was mercilessly beaten up and his camera confiscated by security operatives who claimed “he tried to prove stubborn”.

The security alert has been extended to the two five-star hotels in Abuja where some of the invited dignitaries would be lodged. Our correspondent who visited one of the top- flight hotels on Sunday said the routine security checks hitherto carried out by the hotel’s security operatives were now being performed by police anti-bomb squads.

A group said to be close to a popular politician reportedly met in Kaduna on May 6, allegedly to hatch a plan to foil the president’s inauguration.

According to reports, agencies of government said to be working on counter-terrorism theories alleged that some leaders of the group had perfected plans to initiate another round of confrontation between their supporters and security agents so as to paint a picture of insecurity in Nigeria.

Part of the plans reportedly adopted included instigating riots in states including Kaduna, Bauchi, Plateau, Borno and Kano. The plan, according to the source, was aimed at impulsive reprisals from some Southern states such that the security agencies would be confounded.

A source also said that one of the action plans of the group discovered includes the bid to infiltrate extremist religious groups to co-opt them in the plot to undermine security and attract international attention.

But the federal government is said to have adopted heavy security measures for the event, to save the country from international embarrassment, considering the number of foreign envoys billed to attend the inauguration ceremony.

Meanwhile, the special envoy and defence minister to the president of Serbia, Mr. Boris Tadic, will be in Nigeria to attend the swearing-in ceremony of President Jonathan.

A press statement signed by an assistant director of press in the Ministry of Defence, Yetunde Sonaike, hinted that the ministry will host the visiting defence minister from May 28 to 31.

In the same vein, the Nigerian Army has concluded plans to deploy several of its troops to Eagle Square in order to assist the police in forestalling any incident of terrorism or bomb scare during the presidential inauguration.

This, according to a close source at the defence headquarters, is to avoid a recurrence of the October 1, 2010, bomb blasts which occurred near the Eagles Square, leading to the loss of lives and destruction of many properties.

It was revealed that the Nigerian Army, apart from providing security, will be involved in a ceremonial parade which will usher in the new dispensation.

The federal government has disclosed that controversial individuals at home and abroad would not be invited to the May 29 inauguration and its corresponding events.

This was disclosed by the secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), Alhaji Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, in a press briefing organised by the Presidential Inauguration Ceremonies Committee in Abuja, yesterday.

He stated that the committee had not made any reservation for entities he referred to as “controversial” though tight security measures have been put in place in and around the Federal Capital and its environs to ensure a peaceful and hitch-free seven-day ceremonies starting from today.

The SGF said that “the seven-day-long event marking the inauguration will be kicked off with a special youth session in Lagos, followed by a dinner for corporate Nigeria at the State House, Marina, today”.

He assured Nigerians that there was no cause for alarm as the security sub-committee headed by the chief security adviser to the president has taken every preventive measures to ensure that previous mishaps, like the bomb explosion during the Nigeria at 50 celebration in Abuja in which citizens lost their lives, do not reoccur.

Additionally, while fielding questions from newsmen on the overall cost of the entire inauguration, he stated that the budget estimate was initially N1.3 billion but has been pruned to N830 million.

On other activities lined up for the event, he said that there would be an exhibition and the unveiling of the president’s portrait at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre on Wednesday, May 25, and then an inauguration lecture on Thursday, May 26 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs followed by the first lady’s banquet for all women at the Banquet Hall in the State House that same day.

There will be a special children’s Day celebration on Friday as well as other activities organised for the less privileged by the first lady and there will also be special Juma’at prayers on that day. Again, on May 28, there will be a football match between the Kano Pillars Football Club and the Enyimba Football Club of Aba at the National Stadium in Abuja.

Also, he said that there will be a special thanksgiving service to be attended by the president on Saturday, May 28, by 4pm at the National Christian Worship Centre in Abuja as well as an Inauguration Banquet at the State House in which there will be musical/cultural and fireworks display in the evening of that same day of the inauguration eve.

Meanwhile, Monday May 30, 2011 has been declared a work-free day to mark the 2011 presidential inauguration ceremonies and the 2011 Democracy Day celebration.

Kuni Tyessi, Joshua Uma, Christiana Esebonu in Abuja And Wisdom Patrick in Lagos

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