Kubwa community sends SOS to FCTA over insecurity, amenities

By Stanley Onyekwere

Abuja residents in Kubwa Extension II, Relocation community, have sent a strong Save Our Souls (SOS) appeal to the FCT Administration and other relevant authorities to quickly mitigate multifaceted insecurity, dearth of basic amenities and developmental issues that have subjected them to daily nightmarish experiences.

In particular, they are crying out to the government to their aid, by swiftly prioritising provision of functional police post or station, motorable access roads, schools, hospitals, electricity supply and potable water supply  in the community, having about one thousand households.

They decried that the relocation settlement, sited on Arab Road, in Bwari Area Council of the FCT, which was mapped out by FCDA in 2003, and duly signed and commissioned to exist, is yet have government presence.  

This call was made through Vice Chairman, Kubwa Extension II, Relocation Residents Association, Mr. Francis Bobai, who spoke to newsmen, at the end of the community’s emergency meeting, at the weekend, in the aftermath of a deadly attack on their private security guards, by suspected hoodlums that attempted to rob the community. 

  Bobai, said the insecurity situation is becoming alarming, because five of their security guards were attacked last week’s Tuesday, resulting to the death one, while four are hospitalised. 

He said: “We deemed fit to cry out to the government to come to our assistance, as we can no longer help ourselves. We pay our taxes, and there is no presence of government within our locality

“We have lived here over 25 years, but to our greatest surprise, we have been neglected by the government. This is because we have provided all the necessary infrastructure in terms of access road, electricity supply, water supply (boreholes), in the community, no presence of hospital not even a clinic for emergency cases, no schools, no police.

“The roads are bad, and we have tried our best to fix both the drainage and roads, but it is so bad that every week we must visit the mechanic.

“We have purchased four transformers for a community with over eight hundred residents (households), it is not enough, so we are also crying out to the government to provide more transformers. 

“We have written so many letters, and follow up, yet there is no solution on ground for us in terms of power supply, schools, as our children are forced to go out of the community to get basic education, and we need the presence of security, either police post or station”.

Continuing, he points out that “So, we have the issue of insecurity, which is the most peculiar situation that we are facing, and some members of the community  were kidnapped and ransome was paid by the community and families of the victims. Many times, hoodlums invade our community to rob and matchet most of our residents.

“Now, most of our security guards are still at Gwagwalada Specialist Hospital and Kubwa Hospital receiving treatment for the injuries inflicted on them by these hoodlums, so it is no longer a situation that affects only Kubwa Extension II Relocation, but the whole FCT, that is why we are looking for a lasting solution from the government.

“We believe that the government can act upon our appeal to curtail the situation, because they have been doing so in many communities, so such should be replicated in our community.