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Terror Alert: Nigerians Express Distrust, Anger Against Government

Published

3 years ago

November 3, 2022

Many Nigerians, especially residents of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, have yet to overcome the palpable tension that gripped them over the terror alert issued by some of the western countries.

The worsening security situation in the country took a new turn last week when Ireland, Canada, Australia, and other countries issued travel advisories to their citizens to depart Nigeria.

In the tension-soaked alert, the United States, alongside other western countries warned of a possible terrorist attack in the nation’s capital, saying the terrorists are aiming at government facilities, places of worship, schools, among others.

Following the terror alert, some government and private establishments have been closing down operations over the fear of attack by the daredevil terrorist that have, over the years, kept the country in captivity.

President Muhammadu Buhari had, in the wake of the security alert, advised the nation’s security establishment and citizens to continue to be vigilant and careful with security, saying it is essential to avoid panic.

Buhari in a State House press statement signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu urged citizens to remain calm, citing the recent changes in travel advice from the US and UK governments, that it should not be a cause for panic.

Part of the statement read: “Nigeria is no exception in having terror threats listed in foreign government’s travel advice to their citizens. UK and US travel advisories also state there is a high likelihood of terror attacks in many Western European nations. Indeed, the UK and US advice to their respective citizens for travel to one another’s countries contain the same warning. Unfortunately, terror is a reality the world over.”

President Buhari also summoned the Security Chiefs to an emergency security meeting. According to the presidency, the meeting was aimed at strengthening the security network across the country.

A top security source who spoke to DAILY POST on anonymity said that efforts are in gear to ensure that the nation’s capital is safe for all residents.

According to him, security agencies are working tirelessly to forestall all planned attacks, stressing that some level of progress had been recorded in the last few days, also confirming that a few persons have been arrested.

He said, “We are doing everything possible to ensure the attack doesn’t happen. This is a serious matter; you should not expect security agencies to make everything public. Of course, some arrests have been made, and normalcy will soon return”.

However, some Nigerians have refused to believe the government’s actions to avert the disaster. Many who spoke to the DAILY POST expressed distrust and anger against the government.

“How do you expect me to believe them? I don’t trust the government either,” an Abuja resident, who sought anonymity, echoed.

Another respondent, who identified himself as Jibrin Musa believed that the government is playing a dangerous game with people’s lives. He went on to accuse the government of having a hand in the whole scenario.

“The government we have in the country does not take our lives seriously. So, it may be a ploy to loot the money, nothing more. See how they handled the Boko Haram issue; it is all about business to them. I will not trust them until they begin to do the right thing,” he said.

Meanwhile, a top-ranking security official in the FCT, Abuja, has expressed dissatisfaction with the level of support the country gets from western countries.

He lamented that they do not carry them along while reviewing security intelligence, adding that it creates room for mistrust.

He added that funding and corruption are significant challenges facing the country’s security architecture.
DAILY POST

Headline

UK Police Arrest Asylum Seeker Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed

Published

1 day ago

October 26, 2025

Editor

The UK police on Sunday arrested an Ethiopian asylum seeker and convicted sex offender, whose crimes had sparked anti-immigration protests, after he was accidentally released from prison in an embarrassing blunder by British authorities.

London’s Metropolitan Police said officers arrested Hadush Kebatu in the north of the capital on Sunday morning, nearly 48 hours after he was mistakenly freed around 30 miles (48 kilometres) away.

Kebatu, 38, had served the first month of a one-year sentence for sexually assaulting a teenage girl and a woman, but was reportedly due to be deported when the Prison Service error occurred on Friday.

His high-profile case earlier this year in Epping, northeast of London, sparked demonstrations in various English towns and cities where asylum seekers were believed to be housed, as well as counter-protests.

Commander James Conway, who oversaw the manhunt for him, said “information from the public” led officers to the Finsbury Park neighbourhood of London, where he was found.

“He was detained by police but will be returned to the custody of the Prison Service,” he added.

Kebatu is now expected to be deported.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Friday he was “appalled” by the “totally unacceptable” mistake that saw him freed rather than sent to an immigration detention centre.

The Telegraph newspaper said he was wrongly categorised for release on licence and handed a £76 ($101) discharge grant.

Police had appealed Saturday for Kebatu to turn himself in, after reports emerged that he had appeared confused and reluctant to leave the prison in Chelmsford, eastern England.

A delivery driver described seeing Kebatu return several times in a “very confused” state, only to be turned away by staff and directed to the railway station.

The driver told Sky News he saw Kebatu outside the jail, asking, “Where am I going? What am I doing?”

“He was starting to get upset, he was getting stressed,” the driver said.

The father of Kebatu’s anonymous teenage victim told the broadcaster that “the justice system has let us down.”

Police arrested the asylum seeker in July after he repeatedly tried to kiss a 14-year-old girl and touch her legs, and made sexually explicit comments to her.

He also sexually assaulted an adult woman, placing a hand on her thigh, when she intervened to stop his interactions with the girl.

He was staying at the time at Epping’s Bell Hotel, where scores of other asylum seekers have been accommodated, and which became the target of repeated protests.

AFP

Headline

Madagascar Revokes Ousted President’s Nationality

Published

1 day ago

October 26, 2025

Editor

Madagascar’s new government has stripped ousted president Andry Rajoelina of his Malagasy nationality in a decree published Friday, 10 days after he was removed in a military takeover.

According to AFP, the decree means that Rajoelina, who was impeached on October 14 after fleeing the island nation in the wake of weeks of protests, would not be able to contest future election.

The decree published in the official gazette said Rajoelina’s Malagasy nationality was revoked because he had acquired French nationality in 2014, local media reported, as photographs of the document were shared online.

French broadcaster RFI said it had confirmed the decree with the entourage of the new prime minister, Herintsalama Rajaonarivelo, who signed the order.

The decree cited laws stipulating that a Malagasy who voluntarily acquires a foreign nationality loses their Malagasy nationality.

Rajoelina’s French nationality caused a scandal when it was revealed ahead of the November 2023 elections, nearly 10 years after it was granted.

It triggered calls for him to be disqualified but he went on to win the contested polls, which were boycotted by opposition parties.

The 51-year-old politician fled Madagascar after army Colonel Michael Randrianirina said on October 11 his CAPSAT unit would refuse orders to put down the youth-led protest movement, which security forces had attempted to suppress with violence.

Rajoelina said later he was in hiding for his safety, but did not say where.

Randrianirina was sworn in as president on October 14, pledging elections within two years.

Headline

Kamala Harris Hints At Running For President Again

Published

1 day ago

October 26, 2025

Editor

Former US vice president Kamala Harris said in a British television interview previewed in Saturday that she may “possibly” run again to be president.

Harris, who replaced Joe Biden as the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate but lost to Donald Trump, told the BBC that she had not yet decided whether to make another White House bid.

But the 61-year-old insisted she was “not done” in American politics and that her young grandnieces would see a female president in the Oval Office “in their lifetime, for sure”.

“I have lived my entire career a life of service, and it’s in my bones, and there are many ways to serve.

“I’ve not decided yet what I will do in the future, beyond what I am doing right now,” Harris told the British broadcaster in an interview set to air in full on Sunday.

The comments are the strongest hint yet that Harris could attempt to be the Democratic Party nominee for the 2028 election.

The interview follows the release of her memoir last month, in which she argued it had been “recklessness” to let Biden run for a second term as president.

She also accused his White House team of failing to support her while she was his deputy, and at times of actively hindering her.

AFP