One thing still bugs me though. How can a jobless 23yr old have the money to be globe trotting? Why can't the father ground him, so he can for the first time in his life go look for work?

Maybe he would't have got the money to go to Yemen. Who knows?

pannyman:

I have watched Larry King Live today, and the American experts are unanimous that their security agencies clearly messed up. The CIA and FBI do not share information which each other due to some childish rivalry between them. At the end of the day hundreds of people's lives were put at risk. Information about this Nigerian boy was presented to them on a platter of gold but was mismanaged.

Information on this boy was also presented to NIGERIA on a platter of Gold. His own father informed the Nigerian SSS, of this, weeks before he decided to go to the US authorities with the same news.

I commend the American end for accepting responsibility for their faults in this but what about the faults of our own Nigerian end? Why are we not calling for our government to admit it made a serious mistake here as well? Do we always have to allow America take blame for all of it, even the part we played?? You do know that is against us?

pannyman:

This guy got on the plane with a one-way ticket and no luggage. This is clearly suspicious, and an alert CIA should have been able monitor him and nip the attempted bombing in the bud. We are talking about the mighty American CIA here and not the Nigerian SSS. The American security agencies really goofed.

Why was the same information not useful to the Nigerian end? Let me guess, it is OK for Nigeria to not recognize the flags? Yes, it is always about the MIGHTY AMERICA and no need to call to book our own Nigerian SSS for continuing to remain the way it has for years? Improvement so we compete is out of the question?

US authority must take responsibility for the event.

erastus75
US SHOULD ASK THEMSELVES WHAT THEY ARE DOING FOR PEOPLE TO HATE THEM SO MUCH SO THE EXTENT OF WANTING TO DESTROY THEM EVERY TIME.

THEY MUST LOOK AT THEIR BACKS AND GO BACK TO THEIR DRAWING BOARD AND REDRESS ALL THE WRONGS THEY HAVE INFLICTED ON PEOPLE.

I rest my case

@Eras,
I think u get it wrong. These terrorists r nt attacking those who r fighting them (let me use ur views now). They cant even get to d power holders of America. They r striking vulnerable, innocent pple, including non-Americans. I believe in dt flight will even be some NNigerians. So, did the about 3,000 killed in 9-11 in any way contribute to Al Qaeda woes, No! As a matter of fact, Americans r against offensives by America.

Before both man & God, terrorism is condemnable. I hope u r listening, Eras?

Americans are really crazy, CNN just reported break down in intelligence, and breakdown in communications between security agencies

The Guardian

   Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Security Adviser queries DG, NIA over Mutallab

    * Inquest reveals involvement of sons of two former justices

From Martins Oloja, Abuja Bureau Chief

NIGERIA's intelligence/ Security machinery has kicked into overdrive in its bid to find what went wrong on its part, who knew what and when about the deeds or moves of Farouk Abdulmuttallab, now facing charges of attempted terror attack in the United States of America (U.S.A).

Piqued by the negative impact of the global discussion of the involvement of the Nigerian in the Christmas day's botched attempt to blow up a U.S.-bound plane that took off from Amsterdam, Holland and with the looming spectre of being tagged a haven of terrorists, Nigeria's presidency has launched a comprehensive probe of the tragic incident. The claims and counter- claims on who knew what, when and where, about Farouk Mutallab's suspected attempt are of course of special interest.

The probe, which promises to be far-reaching, began in earnest on Monday morning when the National Security Adviser Abdul Sarki Mukhtar, a retired Major-General, personally issued and signed a strongly-worded query to the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) Ambassador E.O. Oladeji.

In the query entitled: "Alleged Involvement of Umar Farouk Mutallab in an Attempt to Bomb a U.S. Airliner" and dated December 28, the National Security Adviser indicated that the National Intelligence Agency had prior knowledge of a report said to have been deposited with it on the suspect. The words of the query:

"From all indications, it seemed that your Agency had prior knowledge of a report, said to have been made by Alhaji Umar Mutallab about the tendencies of his son, Umar Farouk, towards radicalisation, which was manifested in the incident leading to his arrest in the U.S."

The query goes further, "It is really unfortunate and sad that knowledge of such an important intelligence issue could not be brought to the attention of this office, or the weekly Intelligence Community Committee Meeting (ICCM). It was this failure that led to the unfortunate incident we are grappling with now".

"The report if circulated within the ICC would have alerted the Security Agencies at our Travel Control Points (TCPs) to take appropriate required action, that would have led to his arrest, before boarding the KLM flight from Nigeria, thereby pre-empting the sad incident", it added.

The NSA notes that "Failure to do so has not only led to this rather unfortunate international embarrassment to the Nigerian nation, but also depicted our country as a haven for terrorists. You are therefore to explain what led to this failure of intelligence, and the persons therein involved. Your explanation, should reach me on or before Tuesday December 29, 2009, "

According to sources close to the NIA, the National Security Adviser's letter has caused some "consternation" within the Agency coming on the heels of a recent crisis that led to the dramatic removal of the former DG NIA, Ambassador Imohe.

The Guardian gathered last night that even as the NIA chief executive faces the challenge of answering the query from the NSA, the presidency has been told that contrary to earlier reports that the lead and indeed activities of Umar Farouk (Jnr) were reported to Nigeria's security agencies, "the father only reported it to a former National Security official who served under President Obasanjo, who in turn reportedly informed one of the directors at the National Intelligence Agency (NIA). The director obviously did nothing about the lead until the current incident happened."

The report of how Mutallab (snr) reported his son is said to have also raised curiosity of the Intelligence and Security Community. One puzzle operatives are hoping to unravel is "what the former Managing Director of UBA knew and what compelled him to head for the American Embassy instead of, for instance, the British High Commission which had in May this year rejected his son's re-entry visa shortly after he completed his degree programme in a London university".

Besides, the Intelligence and Joint Security Services are said to be interested in questioning the eminent Mutallab, a former federal commissioner (minister) under General Obasanjo as military head of state (1976-1979) on "why he did not report the suspicious deeds of his son to the offices of current National Security Adviser or even the Directors-General of the State Services Department or the National Intelligence Agency".

In the same vein, the presidency, still smarting from the embarrassment occasioned by the absence of the president for more than a month now, is now running with bursting adrenaline to get to the root of this crisis. As a result, so many questions are being asked: What are some of the relationships the older Mutallab has in the world of business, government and even religion? Being married to an Arab Yemeni himself, what could the older Mutallab know or say of his son's Yemeni connections? Yemen is now widely known as the base of radical islamic fundamentalists where attacks had previously been planned on American targets.

Could the attempted attack by Mutallab have been a culmination of an intricate web of local and transnational intrigues that may have implications for domestic and foreign policy direction of the current administration?"

Just as answers were being sought to these and other questions, last night, it was revealed by diplomatic sources that Umar Farouk may not have been alone in his suspected enterprise. Indeed, two sons of two former justices of Nigeria have also been fingered and are already under the scrutiny of security men.

British investigators are said to have also revealed that a Pakistani citizen who collaborated with a Yemeni citizen actually trained the three Nigerian suspects inside the United Kingdom.

,

Umar flew
frm: Yemen> Dubai> Nig>
Amsterdam> US.
1. Is US tellin us dat d
security
of all these places is so so
poor? cos he should hav
been carrying his bomb along
somehow, Haba!
2. Why didnt Umar
bomb the plane while
preparin d bomb for about
30mns in d toilet? He should
hav if indeed hes a suicide
bomber.
3. We've heard from
passengers on the plane on
CNN, cant
we hear from Umar also? I'm
sure he is no dumb head.
So if we are already denying
n disapprovin him of his
action then u neva can tell.
We'll keep our hands
crossed n wait til d Jan 10
hearin.
This could hav been a US
inner propaganda, they'll
make n break countries in d
name of the UN.
They could capitalize on one
of the countries Umar has
been thru n call us terrorist.
His fathers report to the FBI
could hav been their tip off
for a potential candidate.
Hav we ever had a rethink
that havin destroyed their
WTC, to propel the
deployment of their troops to
the
Arabian Peninsula! n siphonin
their oil. Bombs hav killed
more civilians- children,
women- than soldiers in
there war torn countries.
I really wonder who the
terrorist is!

why didnt the STUPID AMERICAN INTELLIGENCE ACT ON THE INFO GIVEN BY THE FATHER OF THE TERROR SUSPECTI SUSPECT THEY HAVE A HIDDEN AGENDA ON THIS OUR COUNTRY!!!, WHAT IF THAT STUPID BOY SUCCEDED WITH THE TREAT!!!!AMERICA WILL PROBABLY BRING IN THEIR MILITARY BASE THEY ALWAYS WANTED TO DO.AND OUR LAME DUCK FOREIGN MINISTRY IS SILENT, TALKLESS GOVERMENT!!!

the boy got on the wrong boots so let him face it atleast he was pickin scraps on the street like some and they are not as frustrated
as that booloo