The minister of interior, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola has lashed out at the security men posted to the Kuje Correctional Centre for not doing their best to protect the facility.
Recall that Boko Haram terrorists had on Tuesday attacked the facility and released their fighters who were held there.
Aregbesola who undertook a tour of the custodial centre on Friday after Tuesday’s deadly attack said the security men could not hold their ground despite the fortification of the facility.
He said he was utterly disappointed by the security officers who were deployed to defend the Kuje Medium Security Custodial Centre saying the facility was the most fortified in the country.
“I am disappointed by the level of defence by the team that was deployed here to protect the facility.
“We have a world class facility here by any standard. I am disappointed with the level of defence. We had enough men to protect this facility but, unfortunately, they couldn’t hold their position effectively and that was the reason for the breach.
“Now my position is so clear; I have declared since April last year that all our facilities are red zones and that whoever attempts an attack must not live to tell the story. I still maintain this.
“Kuje is the most fortified in the country if fortification for security is the determinant of whether it is medium or maximum. It is medium by size but maximum by the security there.
“We have a platoon of security officers deployed here. We have the high grade of military and police and other security forces deployment for protection but strangely something happened most of which I cannot say on camera,” he said.
However, the minister urged everyone to put what happened behind and move on while a manhunt had been launched to apprehend the fleeing criminals.
He sang the familiar refrain that the Boko Haram elements “have been degraded in the northeast”.
“I want to believe those who escaped can only run but cannot hide. It is very regrettable that this happened; let us put it in context, the nation was experiencing asymmetric warfare.
“Yes, the insurgents have been degraded in the north east of Nigeria; 61, 000 of them are in our custody in the north east, the effect of the effectiveness itself in degrading them in the northeast is what we are experiencing.
“As sad as it is, we must put behind whatever it is happening in the context of the asymmetric warfare unleashed on the nation by this criminal elements and we will rise to it, that’s the assurance I want to give to Nigerians,” Aregbesola said.
