It will be recalled that the countries issued the advisory, warning their citizens to avoid travelling to Nigeria, particularly Abuja, because of a potential terror attack in the city.
The government also allayed the fears of the citizens, as President Muhammadu Buhari had on his return from his official visit to South Korea weekend, down played the terror alert raised by the western countries, saying they had always issued such advisory to their citizens in countries across the world and that Nigeria would not be an exception.
The issue had generated so much anxiety in the FCT, especially after the UK and US had asked staff of their embassy and High Commission and citizens to leave the city.
‘Nigerians not in danger’
But the National Security Adviser, NSA, Maj. General Babagana Monguno, retd, who stated this while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the emergency security meeting summoned by President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday, said Nigerian citizens are not in danger.
Monguno, who was flanked by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, NIA, Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, said the panic that followed the US terror alert addressed to its citizens in Nigeria was unnecessary because the hype and the sense of insecurity it created were unfounded.
He urged Nigerians and other residents to go about their daily lives as usual, insisting that the security situation in the country is not as dire as the US and UK governments had painted.
The NSA also stated that the armed forces, security, and intelligence organizations were continuing with their mandate to keep every Nigerian and every area of the nation secured.
Monguno, who disclosed that the meeting basically was to discuss recent happenings within the FCT and certain declarations and alerts coming from various quarters insinuating growing insecurity and threat to security within Abuja and environments, assured that the country and the capital remained secured
He said: “In rounding off, I will like to first and foremost, assure all the citizens of this country that any exaggerated sense of insecurity, any hype about a disintegration of our security forces, intelligence agencies, is unfounded.
‘’I want to assure Nigerians that so far, the situation has been under control, the intelligence and security agencies have made a lot of arrests.
‘Unnecessary panic’
“The issue of Nigerians being made to panic is unnecessary. The situation in various areas of the Federal Capital Territory has been brought under control and we’re trying as much as possible to work with our neighbors and, within the domestic situation, to work with our foreign partners in a responsible way, without giving the impression that Nigeria is skating on thin ice and we’re about to implode.
‘’I’ll want to dispel any illusion about any heightened sense of insecurity. It is false, it is irresponsible for anybody to give that signal.
“We’re working with our foreign partners in a responsible way and Nigerians should go about their normal daily undertakings without being put in a situation of fear.”
Asked specifically to state whether the advisory given by the countries was false as dismissed by the Inspector-General of Police, the NSA said: “We’ve been sharing intelligence with not just the US, but with other partners and we’ve been acting on the intelligence; we’ve been working.
‘’Has anything happened so far? No, nothing has happened, but they went ahead to issue this advisory to their people and, of course, the connotations are there, they could have various reasons for doing that.
“This is the first time it is happening. Come on, it’s the first time it is happening. I don’t have that crystal ball to know the workings of their minds, but the truth is that the alert was for their own citizens. Probably the way in which it was released became complicated at the end of the day.
“These are conjectures. There’s nothing that is specific. It is an unnecessary distraction. As far as we are concerned, the safety, the security of Nigerians is paramount and as far as we know, there’s nothing untoward so far.
“Nigerians should be allowed to go about their legitimate undertakings without being put in a tight spot. The country is safe, Abuja is safe.”
