The House of Representatives on Wednesday constituted an ad hoc committee to investigate the rising insecurity and loss of several lives in the FCT despite an investment of about $460m Chinese loan by the government.
The committee headed by the member representatives Ilaje/Ese Odo federal constituency of Ondo state, Donald Ojogo is to investigate the monumental financial investment that has not yielded commensurate result.
The resolution followed a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Amobi Ogah.
Moving the motion, Ogah said the most important of all responsibilities of government is the protection of lives and property as well as the entrenchment of security to engender good governance.
He explained it was in furtherance of this and in the discharge of government obligations that the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, acting in good conscience, embarked on the need to curb insecurity in the Federal Capital, Abuja by installing CCTV cameras around strategic areas to monitor unwholesome activities with a view to preventing crime and placing surveillance on criminals and apprehending same.
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He said further that in order to firm up the exercise, former Finance Minister, Dr Olusegun Aganga led a Federal Government delegation to Beijing, China in 2010 to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with ZTE Communications of China to which the contract for the installation of the CCTV was equally awarded.
According to him: “Despite this huge investment as well as the financial burden Nigeria is subjected to by way of servicing the loan, the impact of the CCTV is not felt in any manner. Rather than abating, crime rate has soared in Abuja leading to daily reports of deaths arising from unmonitored crimes around the Federal Capital.
“The current situation whereby Nigeria is paying heavily for this loan obtained from a Chinese bank to execute the non-functional CCCTV contract undertaken curiously, also by a Chinese firm and contractor leaves the country in a lose-lose nightmare.”
