AN obviously miffed President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, July 5, 2022 expressed disappointment with the intelligence collapse in the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kuje, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), which was on Tuesday night attacked by suspected terrorists, who freed a large number of inmates, including their detained comrades in arms, in the process.
Buhari said, while fielding questions: “I am disappointed with the intelligence system. How can terrorists organise, have weapons, attack a security installation and get away with it?”
Visibly shocked by the scale and audacity of the attack, the President asked: “How did the defences at the prison fail to prevent the attack? How many inmates were in the facility? How many of them can you account for? How many personnel did you have on duty? How many of them were armed? Were there guards on the watchtower? What did they do? Does the CCTV work?”
Accompanied by his Chief of Staff, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, the President ordered “a comprehensive report” on the incident.
Earlier on arrival, Buhari was briefed about the attack by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Dr. Shuaib Mohammad Lamido Belgore, and the Controller General of Nigeria Correctional Service, Mr. Haliru Nababa, who showed the bombed-out section used to access the facility and the records office, which was set on fire, adding that the invaders had launched an attack on all cells in which Boko Haram terrorists were held.
The President was further briefed on the developments, even as officials said none of the 63 terrorists could be accounted for, even though their records were intact and backed up.
The President was also informed of the re-arrest of 350 of the escapees, while about 450 others could not be accounted for, with a rapid response underway to recapture the fleeing inmates.
