Bama, Nasarawa Killings: Jonathan convenes top-level security meeting
President Goodluck Jonathan Friday, met with heads of all the security agencies in the country to review the murder of over eighty members of the Nigeria Police Force in Nasarawa and the Bama attack in Borno states.
The meeting which lasted for about two and half hours had in attendance, the Chief of Defence staff, Admiral Ola Ibrahim, National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki, the Chief of Naval Staff, Dele Ezeoba, the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar and the the Director General of the State Security Service, Ita Ekpenyong. The Chief of Army staff was represented by Maj. General Emmanuel Bassey, Chief of Policy and plans in the Army Headquarters.
Though the security chiefs declined to speak with the press, the Inspector General of Police who wore a black arm band to the meeting, described the murder of the police officers as a sad development for the
country before he was shielded into his waiting car by the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Dele Ezeoba and the Director General of the State Security Services, Ita Ekpenyong.
But the Minister of Police Affairs, Caleb Olubolade who attended the meeting briefly before he was excused to allow the president meet with the service chiefs and the Inspector General of Police separately told Journalists that though the killing of security personnel who are paid to protect Nigerians is a sad development, the police would not carry out a reprisal attack on the community because it will not solve the problem.
According to him, “it is sad that those who are protecting lives and property are becoming the targets of various insurgents and criminality be it political or otherwise.
“The security agencies particularly the police will not want to go and revenge, it is not going to help us because they are supposed to protect lives and property; going to revenge will not douse tension and will bring about lack of confidence in the system. So, we will strictly discourage that” he said.
