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…Bans Pantekas, restricts scavenging to dumpsites
Stories by Stanley Onyekwere
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has announced that individuals caught vandalizing public infrastructure will now face charges of economic sabotage, so as to effectively tackle the increasing threat posed by such activities.
This was disclosed yesterday at the end of the first security council meeting in 2025 chaired by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Nyesom Wike, where all security activities were reviewed for last year.
Briefing the media after the meeting, the Commissioner of Police, FCT, Olatunji Disu, noted that it have observed that whenever the government charge the suspect to court, the punishment given to them are lenient, thereby seemingly allowing vandals to continue their nefarious activities.
Disu said: “Most of the time they get community service where they are flogged, they get 24 strokes of the cane. At times they get fined for 2,000, 5,000 Naira. So we noticed that we have been recycling these criminals.
“The activities of the vandals are enough to kill residents of the Federal Capital Territory, because they remove all these manholes and while driving at night you may not know that they have been removed and is capable of causing death.
” So they will be charged for economic sabotage and even at times, if possible, attempted murder or murder.”
He highlighted the dangers posed by vandalism, such as the removal of manhole covers, which often lead to fatal accidents.
“These acts are enough to kill residents of the Federal Capital Territory. Imagine driving at night and falling into an open manhole. This is not just about infrastructure—it’s about lives”, he stated.
He urged residents to view public infrastructure as shared property and report suspicious activities, so as to help protect what belongs to all and sundry in the territory.
He further disclosed that the council also resolved to enforce a two-week ban on the operations of Pantekas (scrap metal dealers) to enable relevant security agencies profile them and ensure only legitimate businesses remain.
Similarly, he revealed that scavenging activities have been restricted to designated dump sites outside the city center and suburbs.
According to him: “We are shutting down Pantekas for two weeks starting tomorrow to conduct proper profiling. Scavengers, too, must now limit their activities to dump sites. They have no business in the city center or residential areas.”
Commenting on the persistent threat of “one chance” activities in FCT, CP Disu explained that such criminals activities are treated as armed robbery and, in some cases, kidnapping under the law.
He revealed that the Police recorded significant progress in 2024 by recovering 21 operational vehicles used by the criminals.
“Most of these vehicles were fully tinted, making it difficult for victims to seek help.
“We will continue with the intelligence-driven patrols and strategies that worked last year to reduce these crimes,” he reiterated.
While responding to inquiries about the bomb blast in Bwari, the Commissioner assured the residents that investigations are ongoing.
His words: “We are doing everything possible to unravel the matter. When the time is right, I will provide an update on our findings.
