*Bans unpainted taxis, bolt
*Insists Sen. Kingibe can’t chose friends for him
By Daniel Tyokua
The Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has lamented that the battle against banditry and kidnappings in Abuja metropolis is being hampered by insufficient tactical equipment and operational vehicles.
He also banned online pay-taxi services such as bolt and others from plying in the FCT, saying criminals have resorted to their use to perpetrate crimes.
According to the Minister the absence of equipment to track criminals in some border communities of the FCT, has partly led to a surge in kidnappings and ceiminality.
Wike spoke during a chat with select electronic media houses in Abuja.
He nonetheless, assured residents that the security challenges were being addressed, saying he secured approval for emergency procurement from President Bola Tinubu.
He stated that the approval specifically aimed at acquiring digital tracking tools and operational vehicles to enhance the capabilities of security forces in countering kidnappers would enable him procure operational vehicles for some Police Divisions and also provide buffer stations eapecially at the Area Councils that are far flung from the Abuja city center.
Wike said, “so many facilities were not provided and vehicles for the security agencies are not there.
“You cannot believe that equipment to track criminals are not there, and when anything happens, security agencies go back to the Office of the National Security Adviser or to the Force Headquarters. That is not the way it is supposed to be.”
He noted that the FCT Administration had identified the requirements of each security agency, and these would be addressed through the emergency procurement.
“Before we came on board, the police had said that they had requested procurement of a certain number of motorcycles where vehicles cannot get to – the remote areas. Some of these areas are mountainous.
“Unfortunately, the motorcycles were not provided, but we have been able to do that now,” he said.
Wike also disclosed plans to establish a Joint Task Force in the FCT with full compliment of Command and Control structure, well-equipped to respond swiftly to security emergencies.
He also said he was addressing the strike embarked upon by primary school teachers, saying his administration decided to share the burden with Area Councils.
He equally said he has mandated the Area Councils to identify toad project to be executed by his administration to aid rural infrastructural development of the territory.
On the allegation by Sen. Ireti Kingibe that he hardly listens, Wike said the Senator wanted to foist herself on him, stating that she cannot determine his friends for him.
He affirmed that Sen. Kingibe wrote to see him, but said he did not give approval for the meeting because he was newly appointed then and was yet to be briefed by the administrative staff of the FCT, and wasn’t in a position to properly dissect what to discuss with her by then.
He noted that the vandalised CCTV Camera project was not an FCT but Federal government project, which is hampered by the criminal tendencies of residents to cannibalise infrastructural facilities, including removal of man-hole covers across the city.
