The Kogi State government has debunked reports of bomb explosion in its offices in Lokoja, the State capital, on Tuesday.
It described the reports as “false and misleading”.
A press statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor Yahaya Bello, Onogwu Muhammed, said: “the attention of Kogi State Government has been drawn to a false and misleading publication in the media platforms captioned: “Explosion Rocks Kogi Government Office”.
He said the government was miffed and viewed the publication as malicious, false, misleading and a calculated attempt to cause panic and undermine the already improved security situation in the state.
“May we, at this point, state the true facts surrounding the incident that actually occurred earlier this morning of 26/07/2022 around the Ministry of the Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, opposite Muhammadu Buhari Civic Centre, Lokoja.
“There was a distressing call to the police regarding an object that looked like an IED placed on the fence of the ministry of Local government and chieftaincy Affairs, opposite Mohammad Buhari Square, Lokoja.
“The Bomb Disposal Unit at the Nigerian Police Force Command located a minute away from the scene was immediately deployed to the area.
“On arrival they found out that it was a plastic Bottle and a Can of insecticide wrapped together with a power source to look like an IED. It was discovered to be a hoax and the object was removed by operatives of Bomb Disposal Unit.
“However, there was no explosion around any government premises in Lokoja as reported by some media platforms.
“The state government considers the publication as not only unprofessional but also believes it’s at variance with the ethics of the profession of journalism.
“For the sake of emphasis, we would like to put the record straight that there was no bomb explosion whatsoever in Kogi Government House or offices in Lokoja metropolises.
“The government commends the good people of Kogi for their unalloyed support given to the security agencies in the state and enjoins them to disregard false news as it is capable of causing palpable tension as well as instilling fear in the state while urging them to go about their normal businesses as there is no cause for alarm,” Muhammed stated.
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