Edo Train Attack: Expert Reveals Entire Railway System Is Vulnerable

Edo Train Attack: Expert Reveals Entire Railway System Is Vulnerable

by Victor Ndubuisi
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According to Dr. Kabiru Adamu, a security and intelligence expert, the nation’s whole railway system is open to attacks.

Adamu made this statement in an interview on Monday morning’s Sunrise Daily episode of Channels TV, which our correspondent was watching.

Numerous passengers waiting to board a train from the Igueben station in the Igueben Local Government Area of Edo State to Warri in Delta State were reportedly abducted on Saturday night by suspected herdsmen, according to news reports on Sunday.

Edo Train Attack: Police Intensify Search For Missing Passengers, Arrest One Suspect

However, Adamu bemoaned the lack of security personnel and equipment, such as CCTVs, that may have assisted in the inquiry and early detection of what had happened.

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He said, “Accountability is a major challenge. We have a minister of information who promised us that the security level on the railway is adequate and is confident that that is why he is resuming the rail services when the Abuja-Kaduna rail service was resumed and I’m sure he felt that that applied to all the railway infrastructure in the country.

“But unfortunately this incident has shown clearly and has confirmed what we said when he (the minister) made that statement.

“Earlier on I explained what a good security posture in any location should be, and I can tell you with all sense of responsibility that the entire railway infrastructure unfortunately remains vulnerable.”

BREAKING: NRC Shuts Edo Train Station Indefinitely Over Gunmen Attack

Adamu added that the assaulted station lacked a CCTV that would have been useful in the event of an attack and that preventative measures like CCTVs should be put at all railway stations and states across the nation.

As information or intelligence might be provided early to avert attacks of any kind, he also said that early warning systems through traditional rulers, communities, market councils, and others should be successfully used to deter or even prevent additional attacks.

Ten months have passed since robbers ambushed the Abuja-Kaduna train service, murdering 14 people and kidnapping 65 more in the process. After being held captive for months and paying ransoms, they were freed.

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In a statement, the public relations officer for the Edo Police, Chidi Nwabuzor, confirmed the occurrence. He said that the AK-47-wielding kidnappers broke into the train station and fired randomly before kidnapping a large number of would-be travelers and taking them into the wilderness.

Incase You’ve Not Heard, Scores Of Passengers Abducted As Gunmen Attack Train Station

But he said that security forces were searching the bushes for the kidnapped travelers.

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The Intelligence Response Team and the Anti-Terrorism Squad were among the special police squads sent by the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, to Edo State to assist local law enforcement in rescuing the victims.

While a suspect in the attack has been detained and two kidnapped victims have been freed, 31 other passengers remain unaccounted for.

 

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