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Prof. Dora Akunyili ,Nigeria's minister
of information on Sunday gave an
official update on the sad case of the
Nigerian alleged terrorist.Umar Farouk
Abdul Mutallab failed in his attempt to
bomb an American airline on
Saturday.The minister said that
government has reinforced security
across Nigerian airports.She also had
kind words for the father of the alleged
terrorist because he had earlier
informed United states authorities about
the activities of his son.Akunyili's
statement reads thus:
``On the 25th of December 2009, we received with
dismay the news of an attempted
terrorist attack by Umar Farouk
Abdulmutallab on a US airline. We want
to reiterate that Nigeria as a nation
abhors all forms of terrorism. Nigerian
security agencies are working
hand-in-hand w th international security
agencies on this matter.
``The man in
question has been living outside the
country for a while. He sneaked into
Nigeria on the 24th of
December 2009, and left the same day.
``The father,
Alhaji Umar Mutallab who is a
responsible and respected Nigerian, with
a true Nigerian spirit had earlier
reported his concern about his son's
activities to relevant American
authorities. The father has already
expressed deep shock and regret over the
son's action.
``
want to assure everybody that our
airports are safe, having just passed
ICAO security Audit and the American
Transportation Security Administration
Audit in November 2009. However, in the
light of the new developments, we have
reinforced our security systems in all
our airports.As investigations go on, we
will brief you further.''
.........
Our Security personnel Must be
Vigilant --Mohammed Tukur
By Emeka Okoh , Newsdiaryonline
Following the terror attempt on a
Delta airline by a 23 year old
Nigerian Umar Abdulmutalab, the
assistant secretary general of the
Airlines Operators of Nigeria, Alhaji
Mohammed Tukur has charged the
aviation authorities in the country to
be very vigilant especially in baggage
handling.Alhaji Tukur explained that
any negative attempt on the aviation
industry will jeopardize the
achievements such as the category one
status made in 2009 in the sector in
the country.
Tukur cautioned Nigerians to allow
relevant agencies to carry out their
investigation on the attempt before
jumping into conclusion.The AON
secretary urged the aviation
authorities to beef up security not
only on the international routes but
on the local routes also as most of
these miscreants use these local
airports.
“We need more security at our
airports; we need sniffer dogs at the
Murtala Mohammed International airport
.They always check baggage going out
and not the ones coming in. There
should be dogs that should be
positioned to do this and they must be
serious screening. We are joking with
our local airports; these guys don’t
travel by road, they travel
through our local airports”
While noting that security operatives
at the airports in the country are
well trained, Tukur warned that the
security should not be underestimated
by providing necessary logistics to
perform.
The AON Scribe rated the out going
year as a good one for Nigeria in
terms of safety and urged the
authorities to improve on airport
infrastructure to attract investment
into the country.
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