An air of despondency mixed with anger enveloped the Senate on Tuesday as lawmakers for the umpteenth time searching for answers to Nigeria’s security crisis
The upper legislative chamber reached a resolution asking the leadership of the Senate to meet with President Buhari in finding a lasting solution to the security challenges facing the country.
The Senate also reached a resolution inviting the newly appointed Service Chiefs to appear before it for briefing.
The position of the Senate follows a motion by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), in which he drew attention to the activities of Boko Haram and bandits in Shiroro, Munya, and Rafi Local Government Areas.
Musa had in the motion disclosed that at least 42 communities in Shiroro and Munya have fallen under the control of Boko Haram with about 5,000 villages sacked in the last three days.
The lawmaker also told the Senate that 3 military camps came under heavy attack with some soldiers killed by the rampaging insurgents.
For the numberless time, the Senate mourned the senseless killing of its citizens including military personnel as it observed yet another one-minute silence for the dead.
Lamenting the situation, Senator Ike Ekweremadu fired the first salvo when he asked that the government and the Senate be “shutdown”.
“We have to decide either to shut down the government and deal with it. Any government that cannot protect his people has lost its legitimacy”. All the things we predicted are happening, we should shut down Niger state like what we did with covid 19, shutdown Senate”, he said.
The President of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan quickly fired back saying what is required was not to shutdown the Senate but continuous engagements with the executive arm of government.
Lawan said the military clearly requires more funding for recruitment as well as purchase of weapons.
He therefore pushed that the executive come forward with supplementary budget to provide the military with more resources to prosecute the battle against Boko Haram, bandits who according to the Governor of Niger State are only metres away from Nigeria’s capital, Abuja.
In his contribution, Senator Chimaroke Nnamani(PDP, Enugu State) said “Things have fallen apart in Nigeria.”
He asked the Senate to take a list of the problems with its resolution and submit same to the executive for necessary action. He said where the executive fails, the Senate should be prepared to use its powers to override him.
But the deepest emotion came from weeping Senator Smart Adeyemi (APC, Kogi West) who said Nigeria is on fire and hemorraging at the same time from bad leadership; lampooning the poor handling of NIGERIA’S security by the executive arm of government.
In the quest for solutions, there were suggestions asking Nigeria to seek assistance from foreign powers, decentralization of the police and the need to return to true federalism.
Senator, Ajibola Bashiru, (APC , Osun Central) however told the Senate it cannot continue to lament or pass the buck; reminding it to use its powers to effect the kind of change it wants.
There were reminders that the threat of terrorism in Nigeria was widely foretold with authorities paying little or no attention to the early warnings including the report of the Global Terrorism Index.