Fashola beefs up Lagos security, faults US terror warning

Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola has donated 100 patrol vans, and 150 motorcycles to the State Police Command in order to complement their efforts in protecting the lives and property of Lagosians.

Sppeaking during the handing over of the security vehicles, the Governor faulted a report released by the United States consulate stating that Sheraton hotels in Lagos were potential targets for Boko Haram.

The US has routinely released such reports but there has been no such attack in the Southern part of Nigeria since the American government started releasing these sort of reports many years ago.

Fashola said, “There is no further information regarding the timing and method of the attack. US citizens were just cautioned to avoid the hotel. I think there are channels of communication which information of that type can shared without creating panic. And I think that citizens of all nations can be protected without throwing a cat among pidgins.

“I will hope that we are more circumspect in the way we share information and that our intentions are noble.

“This is very important. At this time, what the country needs is more information in the right hands, to the right places. This will assist our agencies and government to overcome this difficult period”.

Speaking on the negative impact of the information Fashola said: “The fundamental freedom that seems to have gone out of our daily discourse, which is the freedom from fear and this was a freedom that was recognized in 1948 when the declaration of rights were been adopted as a global publication.

“At a local level, I have received information before that a particular commercial bank was about to be robbed. I did not go out and announce to the public that such act will be committed in the state. All I did was I called the security officials and what we did was to sleep inside the bank. The robbers came at night, and we apprehended them without the public idea except the bank manager who was aware on why we visited the bank and our mission,” he added.