AS Muslim faithfuls in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) join other Ummah worldwide to celebrate Eid-el-Fitri today, Wednesday, April 10, security agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) provided adequate security across prayer grounds in the city.
The ICIR observed a massive deployment of personnel from the organisations in mosques and Eid grounds, with officers conducting patrols and surveillance to forestall any untoward incidents.
The personnel were more concentrated on Airport Road, between Lugbe and the City Gate, before the National Stadium, where thousands of residents trooped to the National Eid Ground to offer prayers.
Officers and men of the agencies filed on the highway, controlling movements with dozens of their vehicles.
The situation was not different in Kuje, Bwari and other area councils of the nation’s capital, where they were joined by officers of the Directorate of Road Traffic Safety Services (DRTSS) to ensure a free flow of human and vehicular movement.
Similarly, in Berger and Kubwa, which are part of the city, The ICIR observed the presence of police and FRSC officers.
There was also a significant security presence at Apo Legislative Quarters, where Muslims observed their Eid prayer.
The Commissioner of Police FCT Command, Benneth C. Igweh, in a statement issued on Tuesday, April 9, reiterated the security agencies’ commitment to maintaining peace and order, urging members of the public to cooperate with security personnel and report any suspicious activities.
He noted that the police proactively deployed the material and human resources available to the command across the nooks and crannies of the FCT.
“The deployment, which is aimed at ensuring that residents of FCT enjoy a peaceful and serene atmosphere before, during and after the Eid celebration, is characterized by visibility policing and the deployment of explosive ordinance devices (EOD) experts at various prayer grounds and event centres, raids on identified black spots, uncompleted buildings/shanties, stop and search, vehicular and foot patrol,” he said.
Eid-el-Fitri marks the beginning of Shaawal, after the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
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Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M