IHEJIRIKA: TERRORISTS SMUGGLED EXPLOSIVES INTO LAGOS IN FUEL TANKERS

Two weeks after the plot to bomb about 16 landmarks in Lagos was uncovered and 14 culprits arrested, new information has shown that the suspected terrorists had smuggled in the said explosives and the detonators in empty fuel tankers.

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Azubike Ihejirika, who made this disclosure yesterday at the second day of the interactive session on Military-Media Relations in Nigeria, held in Lagos, said the plot was nipped in the bud through intelligence reports.

Ihejirika said: “The new information at our disposal revealed that these suspected terrorists had smuggled in the large quantity of explosives into Lagos in empty fuel tankers.”

THISDAY further gathered that the terrorists had chosen that route to avoid suspicion, thereby blending with other tanker drivers on the roads to beat security checkpoints.

While admitting that terrorism all over the world cannot be won without the cooperation of the media, Ihejirika urged the Fourth Estate to always balance their reports before dissemination.

He maintained that the army hierarchy would continue to seek the attention of the media in propagating its activities, stressing that the relationship was a symbiotic one that would galvanise into a better Nigeria.

He refuted claims that the army had declared war on Nigerians, stating that its target was against some elements and groups who have chosen to declare war against Nigerians through their unscrupulous actions.

He added that when this happens, the army has no choice than to fight against such insurgents using all elements of war to protect the sovereignty of the country.
On discipline, he flayed the practice by military men who still disobey traffic laws, noting that henceforth any officer caught disobeying existing laws would be dealt with according to the laws.

He said: “Discipline must be maintained, but the task of doing that is enormous. We don’t want to hear again that any soldier broke any traffic laws. We are greatly disturbed when an officer is involved in a traffic offence. We shall not take it lightly again.”

Source: Thisday