The spokesman for the State Security Services (SSS), Peter Afunanya, said the intelligence and security agencies uncovered and exposed plans by subversive groups and vandals to hijack the nationwide protest.

Mr Afunanya said this during the monthly news conference organised by the Strategic Communication Interagency Policy Committee (SCIPC), hosted by the SSS, on Monday in Abuja.

He said the nation had been experiencing unusual times in the past few weeks, characterised by notable threats of protests.

According to him, as envisaged, the outcome was the wanton destruction of property across multiple states.

Mr Afunanya said that the security agencies have made concerted and frantic efforts to restore calm to the affected areas, successfully re-establishing order.

“While the right to protest is constitutionally guaranteed and remains a cornerstone of democratic governance in Nigeria, however, in the lead-up to these protests,

“The Nigerian intelligence and security agencies uncovered plans by subversive groups and vandals to hijack the process.

“This triggered engagement at both policy and strategic levels with traditional and religious leaders, youth groups, members of civil society, and leaders of thought.

“This is with the aim of appealing to the conscience of the organisers to reconsider their plans in national interest, but these pleas went unheeded.

“Over this period, security personnel have remained resilient and dedicated, and they have also responsibly discharged their duties,” he said.

Giving an update on the activities of the military, security and response agencies, Mr Afunanya said the SSS had, in the last month, heightened its intelligence-gathering and dissemination efforts.

This, according to him, was to drive security operations and law enforcement, ensure the protection of citizens’ rights, and maintain public safety and order.

He said the service, in collaboration with other stakeholders, conducted several operations, which led to arrests, disruption of criminal networks, and the recovery of various incendiary items.

“Within the month of July, the service sustained proactive intelligence acquisition and dissemination through the same action agencies.

“This led to the arrest of criminal elements involved in oil theft, kidnapping, burglary and theft of electrical installations, human trafficking, armed robbery, cult-related activities, terrorism and insurgency.

“Similarly, some high-profile terrorist leaders, logistic facilitators, gunrunners and IED experts were also apprehended.

“During the operations, the following items were recovered: semi-automatic double barrels, cartridges, pump action rifles, locally made pistols, IED initiators, AK47 rifles, magazines, and submachine guns, amongst others.

“Additionally, economic saboteurs involved in diverting palliatives and agrochemicals were also apprehended.

“1,200 (25 kg) bags of palliative rice and 48 bags of rice kits were recovered in one of such operations in Katsina,” he said.

Mr Afunanya said the Nigerian armed forces had, in July, neutralised a total of 572 terrorists, apprehended 790 suspects and rescued 479 kidnapped hostages, as well as recovered large cache of arms and ammunition.

He added that the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) also made significant strides in combating various criminal activities, particularly focussing on protecting the nation’s critical assets and infrastructure during the month.

He said that more than 70 suspects were apprehended in the Rivers and Bayelsa States for illegal bunkering, pipeline vandalisation, and operating illegal refineries.

According to him, the NSCDC’s Anti-Vandal Squad and CG Intelligence Monitoring Team spearheaded these efforts, leading to the dismantling of numerous illegal refineries and the seizure of significant quantities of adulterated AGO.

Mr Afunanya said that NSCDC also tackled cases of armoured cable vandalism, illegal mining, and rail track vandalisation, with hotspots in Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Abia, and Kogi States.

According to him, collaborative efforts with other agencies led to the transfer of certain cases, such as a firearms manufacturing operation in Abuja, highlighting the NSCDC’s comprehensive approach to national security.

“The NSCDC secured over 20 convictions during this period, although some are under appeal, such as notable cases in Akwa Ibom.

“Borno, with over 80 pending court matters, has the highest number of ongoing cases related to theft, vandalism, breach of trust, and financial crimes,” he added.

The SSS spokesman said the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) apprehended 1,250 arrests (1,116 males and 134 females), charged 364 suspects, and secured 225 convictions, including asset forfeitures, in July.

He said the agency also located and destroyed 38.44 hectares of cannabis farms across four states.

According to him, treatment and rehabilitation efforts saw 700 individuals receive care at the agency’s facilities.

“Through our prevention programmes, including the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign, the NDLEA educated 204,661 people in various settings about the dangers of drug abuse,” he said.

Mr Afunanya said the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) exceeded its revenue target with a collection of approximately N467.14 billion, marking a nine per cent increase over the monthly goal.

He said the service had also intensified its anti-smuggling efforts, conducting numerous successful operations resulting in significant seizures and arrests.

According to him, the NCS made a total of 2,442 seizures with a duty-paid value (DPV) of N25.5 billion from January to June.

He said the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) had achieved the rollout of an advanced electronic passport with improved security features and the implementation of the New Visa Policy.

He added that new passports could now be processed within six weeks, while renewals would take three weeks from the date of online payment.

(NAN)