SECURITY people get away with anything under the pretence that they have more information than the public. Where this ploy fails, they become vicious, searching for soft targets on which to vent their anger.

This scenario is playing out at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, where armed robbers stormed last Wednesday night, operated without let, stole about US$600,000 (about N95.969 million) from a bureau de change operator at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

Where were the security agencies? The airport is tucked inside security facilities including the Air Force base. The airport has its own police command, not just a station, and a specially trained anti-terrorist squad. None of them came to the rescue of users of the facility, who were terrorised.

Nobody has been arrested. Like other lower profile crimes at the airport, the incident which confirmed the continuous security lax at the airport, the country’s top airport. Security was so bad at some point some international airlines shunned the Lagos airport. With all the global alerts on terrorism, airports are becoming complete security zones with stiff entry requirements.

Reports of the incidents have been about how much was stolen, the sophistication of the arms the robbers bore, or that they raided a poorly lit airport at night. All these may be true, but they are beside the point.

Security failed last Wednesday. It has failed so often that it is no longer an embarrassment. On Sunday the protocol department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and State Security Service, SSS, reacted to the incident. At the presidential wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, they ordered the arrest of airport correspondents. They are drawing their powers on “orders from above.”

There are firm orders to deal with any journalist seen around the presidential wing of the airport. Officials of the two agencies claimed journalists constituted a threat to national security, confiscated laptops, cameras and other personal belongings of the journalists. These are the security threats.

Security’s vigorous efforts to cover the insecurity at the international airport are at the centre of the harassment of the journalists. Their offence was reporting the robbery at the airport. There are no indications the journalists had any information on the robbers. They only did their job and the high and mighty at the airport took offence.

How would barring journalists from the airport improve security? Would ejecting bureau de change operators from the airport stop robbery incidents?

If our security people were serious, they would have been ashamed enough about the incident at the airport. They should be apologising to the nation for letting it down again. The lapses are embarrassing and the reaction is more embarrassing.