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‘Don’t panic, be alert’, Buhari urges Nigerians in aftermath of UK, US security advisories to citizens

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Presidential Muhammadu Buhari on Friday assured Nigerians of the unwavering determination of his adminstration to keep the country safe and peaceful.

Buhari’s assurance came few days after the United Kingdom and United States had called attention of its citizens to imminent attacks in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The two countries had in separate advisories advised their citizens in Nigeria to be careful about where they visited and travelled to in light of recent security crises in the country.

However, in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, Buhari told Nigerians not to panic, stressing that security agencies were unrelentingly working in Abuja and other states of the Federation.

He added that Nigeria, like many other countries of the world, was going through security crises which would be defeated soonest.

The statement read in part: “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.

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“However, it does not mean an attack in Abuja is imminent. Since the July prison raid, security measures have been reinforced in and around the FCT. Heightened monitoring and interception of terrorist communications ensure potential threats are caught further upstream.

“Attacks are being foiled. Security agents are proactively rooting out threats to keep citizens safe – much of their work unseen and necessarily confidential. Nigerians’ safety remains the highest priority of government. Security services are working around the clock to keep harm at bay.

“Although security threats are real and have been with us for a long while, the nation’s military, the police and other security agencies have shown a capability to deal with it, as is evident from the fact that a majority of our partners, including the United Nations agencies in our midst have not seen the threat as being sufficient to warrant any form of panic or order citizen evacuations.

“It is important for Nigerians to be security conscious, it is also important that responsible members of the society do not create situations leading to unnecessary panic.

“Given the on-going efforts on the part of the military and other security and intelligence agencies with the active support of the civilian population, the nation will emerge victorious against the current challenges facing it.”

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