THE Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has described the threat by some terrorists to kidnap President Muhammadu Buhari as a ‘laughable propaganda’.
The minister dismissed the threat despite two separate attacks on the Nigerian Army Presidential Guards Brigade in recent weeks.
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Earlier this month, The ICIR reported that terrorists attacked Buhari’s advance convoy, including soldiers of the Presidential Guards Brigade, in his home state, Katsina.
The gunmen shot two officers in the convoy.
In a similar development, eight soldiers were killed when gunmen attacked a unit of the Presidential Guards Brigade on patrol at the Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on Friday.
The ICIR had reported the threat by terrorists to kidnap Buhari and Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai.
In a viral video, the terrorists, who claimed responsibility for the recent attack on the Kuje prison in Abuja, were seen torturing passengers abducted from the Abuja-Kaduna train.
They threatened to go after Buhari and the governor.
Reacting to the development while addressing journalists after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, Mohammed described the terrorists’ threat as laughable.
The minister said the Federal Government will overcome the security challenges in the country.
He said, “As to those who have issued threats to Mr President, I think it is more of propaganda than anything, it is laughable.
“I want to reassure you that the government is up to the task of ensuring security. Security challenges will come anywhere in the world. The important thing is the fact that you do not lose focus and you continue to work assiduously to overcome it.
“I want to assure you, we are going to overcome.”
Nurudeen Akewushola is an investigative reporter and fact-checker with The ICIR. He believes courageous in-depth investigative reporting is the key to social justice, accountability and good governance in society. You can reach him via [email protected] and @NurudeenAkewus1 on Twitter.