sumaila.ogbaje

News Agency Of Nigeria

<h2>In spite of these security challenges, Nigeria has recorded a remarkable improvement in security administration in 2022.</h2>

The Armed Forces of Nigeria has remained steadfast in restringing peace and security across the country and had deployed troops across the 36 states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to tackle all forms of security threats, in collaboration with other security agencies.

The strings of military operations across theatres of operations have lessened the various security threats and impacted positively on the lives of citizens and national development in general.

Although there are close to eleven thousand deaths recorded in 2022, most of the deaths have been due to military actions not from activities of non-state actors.

In North Eastern Nigeria, the activities of Boko Haram and the Islamic States West Africa Province (ISWAP) have been largely tamed.

The destruction caused by the 13-year insurgency in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa is being addressed, with millions of displaced persons returning home.

Since the beginning of 2022, the tempo of military operations in the North East under the Joint Task Force Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) has escalated, leading to the mass surrender of Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists and their family members to troops in different fronts.

The available record revealed that more than 82,000 terrorists and their families have so far surrendered due to the intensity of the military onslaught against them. More than 60,000 of those who surrendered did so in 2022, alongside their wives and children.

The onslaught also led to the capture of hundreds of terrorists across the region.

Today, about 900 arrested terrorists are awaiting prosecution, while thousands of the terrorists including their commanders, collaborators and logistics suppliers have been killed in land and air operations.

The successes recorded in the various operations conducted in the region by the military has facilitated the return of peace and stability in most parts of the North East.

This is attested by the fact that most Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) have returned to their ancestral homes while several farmlands hitherto inaccessible due to the activities of terrorists are now being cultivated.

According to the Theatre Command, OPHK, the operations also facilitated the rescue of 11 Chibok school girls who have&nbsp;been in captivity since 2014.

The first of the girls rescued, Hauwa Joseph, was intercepted along with her child at Ngazua in Bama on June 12, followed by Mary Dauda and her child rescued at Gava in Gwoza Local Government Area on June 14, while Ruth Bitrus and her child escaped from Ukuba Boko Haram terrorist camp in Sambisa and was rescued by troops in Bama on June 27.

On July 25, troops also rescued two Chibok girls named Kauna Luka and Hanatu Musa with their children at Aulari in Bama general area, while Aisha Grema who was pregnant was rescued with her four-year-old child in Bama on Aug. 21.

The seventh Chibok girl to be rescued was Falmata Lawal and her child on Aug. 30, in Bama general area.

On Sept. 1, 2022, troops also rescued Asabe Ali and her child who escaped from a terrorists’ camp in Gazuwa, Bama while the ninth Chibok girl, Jinkai Yama was rescued along with three children in Bama on Sep. 2.

Additionally, Yana Pogu and her four children became the 10th Chibok girl rescued by the military in 2022, while the eleventh was Rejoice Senki, who also had two children with her.

The eleven girls rescued in 2022 were listed on the roll of the abducted Chibok School girls as numbers 18, 46, 41, 38, 7, 11, 3, 12, 20, 19 and 70.

Similarly, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has had a very remarkable year in 2022, conducting a total of 1,398 sorties to counter insurgency and banditry across the country.

The Air Officer Commanding, Special Operations Command, AVM Abubakar Abdulkadir, said that NAF had flown over 1,950 hours during various operations between January and December in the North East and North West regions to tackle banditry and insurgency.

NAF intervention in the North West led to the elimination of many top terrorists and bandit commanders, while hundreds of kidnapped citizens were rescued.

There was also massive arrest of bandits’ collaborators by troops of Operation Hadarin Daji in Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, and Kaduna States.

Similarly, there have been several air bombardments by the air component of Operation Whirl Punch on many identified terrorists hideouts in Kaduna state with scores of terrorists including their top leaders neutralised.

As the intensity of military operations increased, the Defence Headquarters in November declared 19 terrorists wanted and placed N5 million bounty on each of them.

The wanted persons are notorious bandits and terrorists that have been terrorising Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara states.

Subsequent operational activities through land and air interdictions revealed that some of the wanted bandit kingpins were killed in Katsina and Zamfara.

In the North Central, troops of Operation Safe Haven also recorded a lot of successes in both kinetic and non-kinetic operations in Plateau and part of Kaduna states.

One of the high moment was on Oct. 29, when troops repelled an attack by Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists on Wawa Military Cantonment in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger.

Coordinated land and air operations led to the killing of six of the terrorists and the capture of 18 others while their equipment were captured and destroyed.

Also in 2022, troops of the Guards Brigade successfully apprehended about 60 hoodlums planning to cause security breach in the nation’s capital on the eve on the Independence Day celebration.

However, there were some unfortunate ambushes in the FCT in which the lives of two officers and four soldiers were lost in July, just after the attack on Kuje Custodial Centre, which created panic in the territory.

The military and other security agencies were able to quickly bring the tense situation under control and effectively countered the fake terror alerts issued by the United States and United Kingdom embassies in Nigeria.

To underscore the seriousness with which Nigeria views the security challenges, the National Security Council met three times in July to appraise the security situation and set a target for the military and other security agencies. It’s the first time in the history of the country that the council met three times in a month.

The effects have been monumental in terms of degrading insurgents, bandits, and terrorists across the country.

In the Niger Delta region, the military joint task force, code-named Operation Delta Safe (OPDS), has during the year, destroyed 37 militant camps and over 1,883 illegal oil refining sites in the region.

According to the Commander, OPDS, Rear Adm. Aminu Hassan, 699 suspects were arrested in an effort to secure the operations of oil and gas companies in the Niger Delta as well as safeguard the people of the area.

The operations helped to save over N53 billion worth of crude oil, diesel, kerosene and petrol; destroyed not less than 37 militants and sea robbers camps and recovered 90 assorted illegal weapons and large-caliber ammunition.

In the South East, the military has continued to confront the activities of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra and its militant wing, the Eastern Security Network, with remarkable successes.

On the whole, the armed forces of Nigeria has largely gained the upper hand against enemies of the state across the country in 2022.

It is instructive to note that attacks on troops’ locations and ambush on their convoys have also reduced drastically in the course of the year.

These successes were propelled by enhanced joint operational planning and execution of the plans by all three services, as well as improved synergy with other security agencies in the country.

There was also enhanced intelligence gathering and sharing as acknowledged by the Chief of Defence Intelligence, Maj.-Gen. Samuel Adebayo recently.

He said the agency has continued to carry out its mandates conscientiously with positive outcomes, adding that it prioritised technical and communication aspects of intelligence in support of armed forces operations and activities within and outside the country.

Adebayo said the DIA had also successfully dominated the threat environment with a combination of special intelligence operations and non-kinetic activities which had recorded degrees of successes and continued to deny the enemies of the state, the cohesion and capabilities to operate.

“As we continue to review our activities, in 2023 the Agency intends to refocus its tactical and technical intelligence drive on all frontiers to sustain the gains.

“So far, the result across all theatres has been significantly rewarding,” the defence intelligence chief said.&nbsp;

Nigeria has continued to contend with a number of internal security challenges ranging from insurgency and terrorism in the North East, banditry and kidnapping in North West and North Central, oil theft and pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta, and separatists agitation in South East and South West.

Appraising operational successes of the military in 2022

<h1>The Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Thursday witnessed an upsurge in passenger traffic and flight operations on many domestic routes as many people travelled for Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly elections.</h1>

When the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) visited the airport between 10 a.m and 11a.m, Air Peace, Arik, Aero Contractors and Max Air were seen processing passengers for different routes.

At the boarding gate on Terminal D, a large number of travellers were seen queuing up to board Aero flights to Lagos and Asaba.

In Terminal B, activities also peaked at Arik and Max counters where many passengers were being processed for boarding.

An Airport official, who pleaded anonymity, said that many airlines fully booked and that traffic was heavier in the early morning flights.

He said that the fare slash announced by Arik and Aero to encourage voters also encouraged many passengers to book their flights, accounting for the traffic upsurge.

According to him, today is the peak of the traffic because of the public holiday on Friday and as such, there is heavy traffic early this morning.

Meanwhile, the Station Manager, Max Air, Mr Abdullahi Saroke, said the traffic was less compared to the previous week before the election was postponed.

Saroke said that the airline had full flights to the northern routes like Kano, Yola and Maiduguri, adding that other routes had been recording low passenger turnout.

He said that Max Air, unlike Arik and Aero, did not slash its ticket prices because of the election, as it has one of the lowest fares among the domestic airlines.

“We are not having much passengers today compared to what it was last week before the election was postponed.

“Our northern routes such as Kano, Yola and Maiduguri are the most patronised today while other routes like Lagos and Port Harcourt are not doing too well today.

“I think it’s because many people who travelled last week didn’t come back after the postponement,” he said.

A staff of Arik who pleaded anonymity, said that the passenger turnout was not as expected in spite of the reduction in fares to N16, 000 on all routes.

He said that the airline did not record full flight on all its routes.

A passenger, Michael Audu, said he was travelling to Yola to vote, and appealed to every eligible voter to ensure that they vote.

Audu urged the government and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure free, fair and peaceful poll.

He said that politicians had the duty to ensure the success of the elections.

H also encouraged Nigerians to come out massively to vote during the elections.

“My advice to INEC and politicians is that both have the responsibility of ensuring that the elections are free, fair and peaceful,” he said.

NAN visited the airport between 10 a.m and 11a.m, Air Peace, Arik, Aero Contractors and Max Air were seen processing passengers for different routes.

Election: Abuja Airport witnesses increased traffic

<h1>The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has described as false the alarm that a bomb was planted on an early morning Air Peace flight from Abuja to Lagos on Wednesday. </h1>

Mrs Henrietta Yakubu, General Manager, Corporate Affairs of FAAN, made the rebuttal in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.

Yakubu siad that the passenger, who allegedly raised the alarm, was said to have a history of mental illness.

She said that the passenger had been handed over to the security agencies and medical experts for assessment.

She said: "Following the false information, officers of FAANs aviation security swiftly evacuated passengers, crew and cargo on board the flight and a bomb squad immediately conducted a thorough check on the aircraft and baggage, which confirmed the information to be false.

"After due diligence test has been carried out on the aircraft, a fresh boarding call has been made and passengers have boarded the flight for take-off to the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.

"FAAN will like to re-assure passengers and all airport users that our airports are safe and secure.

"They should carry on their lawful activities without any fear," she said.

News Agency of Nigeria reports that there was panic in the aircraft on Wednesday morning, after a passenger raised an alarm that a bomb was planted in the aircraft.

Mrs Henrietta Yakubu, General Manager, Corporate Affairs of FAAN, made the rebuttal in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.

No bomb on Abuja-Lagos Air Peace flight – FAAN

<h1>The Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMet), has predicted that most parts of Nigeria would experience increased temperatures between January and April, 2019 because of the prevailing climate variations.</h1>

NiMets in its 2019 Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP), said that there would be departures from long-term averages for the day and night-time temperatures for January, February, March and April.

The SRP predicted that while cold season would prevail in January and February, the hot season would dominate in March and April.

According to the prediction, greater parts of the country are expected to record near average temperatures during these months, while some areas will experience temperature anomalies of about two degrees Celsius.

January day time temperature prediction shows very distinct warmer-than-normal temperatures conditions over areas like Sokoto, Yelwa, Shaki, Osogbo, Ondo, Umuahia and Uyo.

However, colder-than-normal conditions are expected over places like Lagos Island, Gusau, Zaria, Kaduna, Jos, Abuja, Lafia and Yola, while the day time temperatures over the rest of the country would remain normal.

Night temperatures are expected to remain normal and colder-than-normal over most parts, while hotter night temperatures are expected over places around Sokoto, Gusau, Yelwa, Katsina, Minna, Gombe, Jalingo and Enugu, NiMet predicted.

NiMet further predicted that the day time temperature outlook for February portrayed a warming trend, adding that temperatures were expected to be warmer-than-normal across the entire country.

It also stated that most northern cities and Lagos were expected to experience colder than normal day time temperatures, while normal conditions were predicted for Yelwa, Bida, Minna, Abuja, Lafia, Makurdi and Lokoja.

According to the prediction, southern parts of the country are expected to experience warmer than normal temperatures during the day.

The day time temperature forecast for April portends an above normal temperature in most places across the country.

Maximum temperature values are likely to be above normal within the range of 0.2 to above 0.8 degrees Celsius in most southern, central and northern cities, NiMet predicted.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the agency on Thursday presented to the public the 2019 SRP, predicting below normal to normal rainfall across the country in 2019.

Increased temperatures to prevail over Nigeria January to April – NiMet

NiMets in its 2019 Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP), said that there would be departures from long-term averages for the day and night-time temperatures for January, February, March and April.

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sumaila.ogbaje

Articles written by the author

Appraising operational successes of the military in 2022

Election: Abuja Airport witnesses increased traffic

No bomb on Abuja-Lagos Air Peace flight – FAAN

Increased temperatures to prevail over Nigeria January to April – NiMet