Read how in Abuja, Boko Haram attacks and the elusive $470 million CCTV cameras

From the 2010 Independence Day car bombing at the Eagles Square to the daring attack on Police Headquarters in 2011, down to the strike on the United Nations building, not forgetting the deadly ThisDay Newspapers’ building attack in 2012, the Nyanya bomb explosion and, of course, Wednesday’s devastating  attacks on Emab Plaza in Abuja, acts of terrorism appear to have permeated  the polity, leaving everyone and every place completely vulnerable. Read the accounts of the blasts and the seemingly defeated efforts to install Close Circuit Television (CCTV), cameras in the major cities of the country. He was more concerned with reeling out the casualty figures. Deadline was fast beckoning in various media houses and a horde of  journalists at the scene had been placed on tenterhooks as they anxiously waited for official statement of the casualty rate from the authorities to authenticate their stories. Behind him were cars, vehicles and other items  which had been reduced to debris. The targeted plaza mainly escaped the attack but not before  having some part torched. Just then, he mounted the culvert in the middle of the road, backing the scene of the deadly bomb blast which smelt like hell to disclose the much awaited information. Accompanied by Mr. Bala Mohammed, the Minister of  the Federal Capital Territory( FCT), he read: “The casualty figure for now is 21 persons and 17 persons injured. If there is any change later on, we will gladly inform you. There are also 17 vehicles that were burnt in the incident. It is also heart warming to note that an arrest has been made and the security agencies will be following up with that arrest.” With the information, Mr. Frank Mba, the Nigeria Police public relations officer, Assistant Commissioner of Police, felt his job at that point had been done. But he was seemingly oblivious of one thing more: that Emab and Banex Plazas where the dastardly act occurred on Wednesday evening were just two out of the plethora of shopping malls that liter Abuja, meaning that other could be vulnerable if left insecure. It was not until a  journalist put the question of police preparedness to secure other shopping malls across the city that Mba  said that surveillance would be extended to all plazas and other public places in Abuja to forestall a similar misfortune. Well, that is precisely what the public was expecting to hear and Mba had done his job. Done, the FCT Minister, Mohammed, took the stage. ”Our  security protocol that is being established is to make sure that some minimal security infrastructures are provided in all our public areas. In fact, it is showing from here that they are being enforced but there are certain incidences that may not be avoided and they are so unfortunate,” he stated. To Nigerians who have been following the trend of events, the statement of the two government officials were palatable but not new. In any case, they remained cosmetic in the light of many promises that had trailed similar attacks in the past. Almost, always, government and, indeed, the entire security apparatus assure Nigerians of adequate protection of their lives and property especially in the event of any crisis. Yet, little or no effort is made to realize that. At least, this is the conviction the ordinary Nigerians have. In effect, the bombs keep going off every now and then and,, in most cases, there had been no narrowed traces of the perpetrators. Yet again, the principal responsibility of government is to ensure the welfare and security of life property of the citizenry. At each occurrence, attention would be shifted for a while. There would a cordon off marked with police crime tapes. Heavy police/military presence would be seen. There would be suspension of business activities and vehicular movements, some times, as if the attacker would stage a come back to the scene. In any case, they had done so before even with an increased surveillance: Remember the second Nyanya bomb explosion on May 1, 2014. Yes, when these attacks come fresh, debates of intensified security surveillance would gain acceleration, attempting to reach a crescendo. But that is the sermonisation. Only at the time. When calm eventually returns, life continues until another bomber strikes. That is Nigeria. But in any fairest sense, Mba and Mohammed were not alone in the reassurance sermon. Since last week’s bombing, an avalanche of glowing condemnations, tributes, reassurances and reiterations have been recorded. From Mba to Mohammed down to Marilyn Ogar, the spokesperson of the Department of State Security Service (DSS), the reassurances go on. The National Assembly, religious bodies, the EU, UN, foreign missions domiciled in Nigeria and in fact most known private and public institutions have condemned the attack. Of course, who would not. Life was involved. Meanwhile, the chief of all the reassurance at the time of filing this report emanated from Vice President Namadi Sambo who inspected the scene on Thursday. Leaving an impression of usual rhetorics, he:”This cowardly and unjust act will be defeated-evil can never be sustained, Insha Allah. This administration and Mr. President will not leave any stone unturned until we defeat these terrorists. Terrorism cannot survive in Nigeria or in any part of this world.” Retrospectively, the Wednesday attack on Emab Plaza at the high brow area of Wuse 11, Abuja jerks a push into a chronology of bomb explosions that had rocked Abuja in the last  four years and unfulfilled tales of promises by government to halt them. More annoying is the fact that the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) camera project, billed for installation in Abuja and Lagos, which was started by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua’s regime and inherited by the present administration, is yet to see the light of day after a large chunk of $470m had been sunk into it. In fact, the completion time was supposed to be July, 2011 but, as at the last time Sunday Vanguard checked, nothing substantial was heard. *Chronology of Abuja bombings, deaths, non-fatal injuries, condemnations and unrealized promises of prevention. The 2010 Independence Day bomb attack Bomb attacks were apparently alien to the residents of Abuja until October 1, 2010 Nigeria’s Independence Day celebration. That year’s ceremony was very unique. It was the country’s golden Jubilee and so, the event was loud at the Eagles square, the venue of the event with most dignitaries of the world in attendance. More so, President Goodluck Jonathan had just taken over the mantle of governance a few months before. While the crowd milled at the venue, a car bomb exploded some meters away, killing 12 persons with the record of 17 non-fatal injuries. Later, it was heard that the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, MEND, led by Mr. Henry Okah was behind the attack. But even though President Jonathan was quick to controversially exonerate MEND whose leader was eventually found guilty and sentenced in South Africa, there were however promises to checkmate and nib the act in the bud. Force Headquarters bomb attack Nigerians were still waiting for government to fulfill its promise when another bomb attack was meted out to the Police Headquarters in Abuja on June 16, 2011. This time suicide bombing. The explosion claimed 6 lives. Sunni Islamist group of Boko Haram later claimed responsibility. Yet again, the government made more promises to stamp out terrorists. Abuja UN building bombing Perhaps, one dastardly bomb attack that got the government and, indeed, the world most rattled was the one  supposedly the most secure United Nations building in Abuja, on Friday, August 26, 2011. This came barely two months after the Police Headquarters was attacked. Twenty-one deaths were recorded in the UN building strike while 73 non-fatal injuries occurred. Hear the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Viola Onwuliri: “This is not an attack on Nigeria but on the global community. An attack on the world.” Similarly, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, described the attack as an ‘assault on those who devote themselves to helping others”. In a statement by presidential spokesman, Reuben Abati, President Jonathan sent his condolences to Mr. Ban Ki-moon and all those who lost loved ones in the bomb blast. “President Jonathan reaffirms the Federal Government’s total commitment to vigorously combat the incursion of all forms of terrorism into Nigeria, and wishes to reassure all Nigerians and the international community that his Administration will spare no effort to bring the perpetrators to justice,” the statement said. Suspected perpetrators were members of Boko Haram. Government said it was on top of the situation. ThisDay Newspapers attack Hardly had the year 2012 left its first quarter than a bomb ripped through ThisDay newspapers bureau in Abuja. Six persons died while several others were injured. According to ThisDay’s Editorial Board Chairman, Olusegun Adeniyi, “The suicide bomber came in a jeep and security guards opened the gate for him. The guy drove in through the gate and rammed into the building and exploded. Two of our security men died, and obviously the suicide bomber died too.” Boko Haram claimed responsibility just as government reiterated its promise to curb the situation. Nyanya 1 and 2 bomb blasts Indeed, it appeared that the Federal Government did something very unusual that in the whole of 2013, no known terror attacks were recorded in Abuja. But on April 14, 2014, bombers resurfaced at Nyanya, a suburb of the FCT. At the peak period on that Monday morning, they planted a bomb at the popular El-Rufai bus terminal. Over 90 persons were killed while non-fatal injuries figure was put at 200 persons. On the heels of the incident, Jonathan increased surveillance at the place. The president’s spokesman said: “The president was saddened by loss of lives in Nyanya bombing. President Jonathan has ordered heightened security in Abuja following Nyanya bombing. President Jonathan extends his heartfelt condolences to bereaved families. President Jonathan directs the medical services to do their very best to save the lives of those injured in Nyanya bombing,” But the defilement of the security surveillance came again on May 1, 2014, when another coordinated bomb explosion ripped through the same area, killing 12 and leaving 30 injured. Analysts said it was meant to stop the hosting of the World Economic Forum(WEFA) which eventually held between May 7 and 9. Emab Plaza hit Since the last Nyanya blasts, there has been, understandably, an increase in the security systems. It would be recalled that a security alert recently prompted the temporary closure of the major markets in Abuja. But the Wednesday, June 25, 2014 attack on Emab shopping malls where 21 lives were lost and 17 persons seriously wounded has once again put residents on their toes. Resumed talks on CCTV Apart from the attacks at Nyanya, on the outskirts of Abuja, others attacks occurred at various places within the heart of the FCT. This has resurrected concerns about the state of the CCTV cameras in the FCT. Being the seat of power and one of the fastest growing capital cities in the world, not a few Nigerians had expected some security sophistication that would resist terror attacks and also reduce criminalities. But in words and deed, such is between the Boko Haram sect and the Nigerian military. He told Sunday Vanguard that Nigeria must shun politics and tackle the insurgents head on. ”It is really very unfortuate and my heart goes out to all those who have lost their lives during the incident. Of course, this raises a lot of questions about the nature of our security system and apparatus not only in Abuja but in all urban areas and the reality that is dawning on us that the security threat we are facing is becoming real. People like us who are from the north east specifically from Borno State; my constituency is one of the worst hit, it has almost become business as usual. People are trying to live with it and then you can only imagine when you find yourself in a very helpless situation. But as some who has been fully involved in this, the reality is that a lot security infrastructure that need to be put in place is now real that we don’t have it. Let’s wake up to the truth. Forget about the politics. Let’s take ourselves the truth and do what is required now. And it is not now, I am sorry, it may be too late. So, the fact of the matter that today is that security in this time and age is all about intelligence gathering and of course the ability to prevent it. And when you look at these kinds of attacks, they are attacks that can only be avoided by prevention. Once, they have occurred, there is nothing you can do about it. ”I understand CCTV cameras were installed in all the nooks and crannies of Abuja at a point. We saw physical things but it now calls to question whether they were working or not. And I think at a point in time, the issue was raised on the floor of the house that they actually considered not to be working and there was the issue about whether it was not completed. So, I think there is a reason now. You see, this is the issue. When things happen where you are, Nigerians tend to only think about the environment they live and that is all. We should think about all Nigerians. If this thing is happening right in the heart of Abuja, what happens in other places. So, the fact of the matter is that we have to rise up to the realities on the ground. When you declare a state of emergency, it is expected that you abandon everything other thing and concentrate on that matter which you have declared emergency on. There is every need for that. Forget about everything and get the security right. In any case, that is the fundamental principle of government. I may not say here that the government has failed but the truth of the matter is that we have not done the needful.” Bottomline Investigations by Sunday Vanguard in the wake of  the Wednesday’s attack revealed a downward curve in the confidence Abuja residents, nay Nigerians have in the security systems of the country, at least at the moment. There is apprehension in the air with no one knowing when and where the next explosives would be detonated. Analysts agree that though government is not taking any rest in the fight against insurgency in the country, it may not have done enough to protect the citizenry. One of its failures is the non-completion of the CCTV, four years counting. May be, if it is completed, there would be less trips to bomb blast scenes, cemeteries and hospitals just the same way observation of one minute-silence in the honour of the departed, the condemnations, dirges and tributes will cease from pouring in.