President Goodluck
Jonathan on Tuesday led other top government officials, former heads of
government and friends of the nation, to mark the nation’s 53rd
Independence anniversary inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The anniversary was marked with the
commemorative Presidential Change of Guards Parade at the forecourt of
the highly fortified Villa.
It was the third time the grand finale
of the nation’s Independence celebrations was held inside the Villa.
Although the Presidency had consistently denied that security concerns
were responsible for this, tight security in the Federal Capital
Territory on Tuesday seemed to lend credence to the theory of fear.
During the nation’s 50th Independence
anniversary on October 1, 2010, two car bombings by the Movement for
the Emancipation of the Niger Delta near the Eagle Square in Abuja
claimed the lives of 12 people and injured 17. The Eagle Square, the
usual venue of national ceremonies, looked desolate on Tuesday, except
for the presence of a State Security Service assault team in a black
pick-up van. The gun-totting agents blocked a part of the Shehu Shagari
Way with a used tyre as they sat in their vehicle and eyed passing
motorists.
The anniversary celebration on Tuesday
which turned out to be more of a military event, was conducted by
two battalions of the Presidential Guards Brigade — the 177 Battalion
based in Keffi and the Seventh Guards Battalion, Abuja.
It lasted about one-and-a-half hours
and featured the inspection of new guard/quarter guard, silent drill,
posting of sentries/colour patrol and echelon reporting of parade among
others.
At the end of the parade, Jonathan, who
was flanked by service chiefs and the Inspector-General of Police,
Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, signed the independence anniversary register
and released pigeons to signify peace.
The President also led dignitaries to cut the anniversary cake.
Unlike in 2012 when he wore a military
uniform of a Field Marshal, Jonathan was dressed in his usual
traditional wear this year. Also unlike last year’s event, his wife,
Patience, did not accompany him.
The dignitaries at the event included
Vice-President Namadi Sambo; President of the Senate, David Mark;
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwwal; Chief Justice
of Nigeria, Justice Mariam Mukhtar; the Deputy Speaker of the House of
Representatives, Mr. Emeka Ihedioha;a former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu
Gowon ; and ex-Head, Interim National Government, Chief Ernest
Shonekan.
Others were former Chief of General
Staff, Oladipo Diya; National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party,
Bamanga Tukur; Chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees, Anthony Anenih;
former President of the Senate, Adolphus Wabara; President, Christian
Association of Nigeria, Ayo Oritsejafor; Chief Imam of the National
Mosque, Abuja, Ustaz Muhammad; members of the diplomatic corps, members
of the Federal Executive Council, and members of the National
Assembly, among others.
However, there was tight security in the
FCT, following fears that there might be a terror attack to disrupt
the anniversary celebration.
Personnel of security agencies,
including the police, the State Security Service, the Nigeria Security
and Civil Defence Corps and the Army, were very visible at nearly all
junctions and strategic locations in the territory.
An Armoured Personnel Carrier manned by soldiers and policemen, was stationed at Nyanya, a gateway to the FCT.
Important public buildings in the FCT
like the National Assembly complex, the Federal Secretariat, the
National Ecumenical Centre, Radio House, the National Mosque, the
Central Bank building, public parks and gardens, as well as other
strategic structures were placed under protection.
The Inspector-General of Police had
earlier placed all policemen on the red alert against the backdrop of
intelligence report that terrorists might strike during the one-day
national holiday.
Motorists, who expected to have a free
drive on Abuja roads, were surprised by checkpoints manned by security
personnel at random locations. The operatives searched passing
vehicles and their occupants.
A military source said it was necessary
to beef up security in the FCT and other parts of the nation to avert a
major security breach by terrorists.
“The security beef-up in the FCT and
other states was to ensure that we were not embarrassed by terrorist
attacks or any security breach and that is why we were searching
vehicles because we didn’t want to give any breathing space to
criminals,” the source said.
PUNCH
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