Soldiers from the Guards Brigade, Nigerian Army, have taken over the entire security of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as Nigeria celebrates her 54th independence anniversary today.
The security beef-up, according to sources, was necessitated by intelligence reports regarding plans by the Boko Haram terrorists to cause mayhem in the federal capital, today.
To this end, soldiers have mounted several check-points on all the entire entry and exit points into Abuja, and even created new check-points after reports of criminals and the terrorists group using alternative routes to get into Abuja, reached the security agencies.
Soldiers have also mounted check-points in some strategic areas within the city to monitor strange movements of vehicles and persons in the city.
Similarly, the Guards Brigade has mounted security scanning cameras in some strategic and vulnerable points in the FCT to scan and detect explosives planted on vehicles, passengers and luggages coming into Abuja.
Top security personnel told Daily Sun of how soldiers at the various security check-points have arrested a good number of Boko Haram members and other criminals who were trying to relocate to the city, even as military intelligence personnel have been deployed in all the notorious spots in the FCT, to monitor criminals.
The Guards Brigade has listed Dei-Dei, Karmo, Gwagwa, Suleja, Zuba, Gwagwalada, Dutse-Alhaji, Mpape, Apo, Massaka, Nyanya, Kugbo, Mararaba, Gudu, among others, as some of the vulnerable points in the FCT.
This is coming just as the Guards Brigade has put in stiffer security measures on the movements and use of dynamites in the FCT, after intelligence reports indicated that some construction workers in Abuja, have a way of getting the dynamites to the terrorists and other criminals.
A security source told Daily Sun that even though the celebrations will be low-key, and take place at the Presidential Villa, where soldiers from the brigade are expected to parade, the brigade would not allow terrorists and hoodlums take advantage of the celebrations to carry out their dastardly act.
The source stated that while the military and security agencies have been able to reduce the number of bomb blasts that used to be the other of the day by Boko Haram, it has put in place stiffer measures for construction companies that use dynamites to do their jobs and monitor the movements and usage of such explosives.
According the source who does not want to be mentioned, unlike in the past when construction companies were allowed to build their armouries to store these explosives, the situation has changed as all explosives are now being stored by the military, police and security agencies.
The source said construction companies that would like to use the explosives must apply to the security agencies to get them and also indicate the dates they intend to use them and if by any reason they were not able to use them on the agreed dates, they must return them to the security agencies.
For now, the source said no blast takes place in Abuja, without the knowledge of the Guards Brigade and the security agencies, and must be announced on public radio stations to inform the residents.
The source also said a Chinese construction firm that tried to flout the order and carried out a blast along the Airport Road, was instantly shut down by the Guards Brigade.
On the security scanning cameras mounted on some major entry points into Abuja which has the ability of detecting an explosive-laden vehicle from a distance, the source said it was to reduce the physical stress of soldiers having to search vehicles and passengers.
As it is now, “all the soldiers do is to make such vehicles spotted by the device to drive through a special route created for that purpose for proper scanning before they allow them to go, that is if what they are carrying do not pose any threat to the security of Abuja, and its environs.
