The growing security challenge confronting the
country was again the focus of the Senate on
Tuesday.
Senators in plenary yesterday took turns to
criticise what they described as poor handling of
security situations in parts of the country leading
to unacceptable loss of lives and property.
While some of the lawmakers canvassed for the
immediate sack of Service Chiefs to enable the
government to infuse fresh blood and ideas into
the system others said that government should
be bold enough to seek foreign assistance to
deal with the situation.
This is coming less than one week after Senator
Enyinnaya Abaribe criticized President
Muhammadu Buhari over his comment in London
that those killing Nigerians were militia men from
Libya.
The debate of the worrisome security situation
followed a motion by Senator Sulaiman Adokwe,
representing Nasarawa South Senatorial District
on the unabating killings in his constituency by
herdsmen.
The near break down of law and order on
Monday in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja
was not left out as the lawmakers warned that a
dangerous security situation had crept into the
city of FCT.
Adokwe who prayed the Senate to initiate action
to halt the killing of his constituents, told his
colleagues that it was obvious that the herdsmen
were determined to wipe out the people.
He noted that those mostly targeted were people
of Tiv ethnic nationality.
He said, “I like to draw the attention of the
Senate to the ongoing crisis in the Southern
Senatorial District of Nasarawa State. Through
out the weekend and up to the moment that I
am speaking, herdsmen have unleashed terrorist
mayhem on the people of the senatorial district,
leaving many dead bodies, numerous wounded
persons and hundreds of thousands of internally
displaced persons. Their victims are largely the
Tiv speaking ethnic nationalities with a reported
dead toll of 32 persons and we are still counting.
“The real tragedy is not in the well coordinated
and simultaneous carnage across Awe, Obi,
Keana and Doma local government areas of
Southern senatorial district but the tragedy lies
from the fact that for four days running, this
mayhem continues unhindered, unchecked,
unstopped by any arm of the law and security
enforcement agencies.
“Indeed, right under the noses of the armed
forces and the police, this killing is sustained
unabated by sheer negligence or refusal to act
by the security agencies. It is very sad that in
Nigeria, with all the security forces a whole
senatorial district will go on being punished by
militia and no action coming from government.
This is a sad commentary.
“It was even with impunity that we woke up
yesterday to see that the entire city of Abuja
was under siege. This country is gradually falling
into anarchy and we need to wake up to our
responsibilities. It is very sad that corpses are
being littered everywhere.
“As I speak to you now, the Southern senatorial
district has been completely emptied by the
militia and they are occupying all the houses and
villages of the Tiv people across all local
government, up to five of them and they are just
within 30 minutes drive from the state capital,
Lafia.
“There is even an army base close to where this
carnage is taking place with no single shot fired
by the army. It baffles me and beats my
imagination that a whole enforcement agency of
the Nigerian state will stand by and witness
Nigerians being killed endlessly. Nobody can
explain this.
“It is no wonder that very eminent Nigerian
citizens have urged Nigerians to defend
themselves because their life is in their own
hands and no longer in the hands of the Nigerian
security forces. I am very emotional on this
matter and I am not one given to emotion very
easily. But what I have gone through this
weekend is very horrifying.
“It is very distressing and sad. It is as if we are
in a lawless society where life is brutish, where
there is absence of state powers. We call on the
federal government to stop this carnage.”
Senator Barnabas Gemade (Benue North East)
who promptly seconded the motion said that the
country was gradually assuming the status of a
nation without control.
Gemade who came short of crying said, “I rise
with heavy heart to second this motion that has
been raised by my colleague, Senator Suleiman
Adokwe of Nasarawa South.
“I want to state here very clearly that this
country is becoming a state without control, it is
becoming a state that is experiencing anarchy.
“It is a state in which we have seen ethnic
cleansing, and when statements like this are
made by very senior nationalists, many people try
to trivialize it.
“It is a shame that a sitting government could
watch criminality go to the level that we have
seen it today rather than rise up and take very
decisive steps against it. We embark on
deniability and simply shield this evil by just
explaining with flimsy excuses that these are
communal clashes in those communities.
‘In deed, the carnage in Nasarawa South affects
mainly people of my ethnic group, who are in
large population in Nasarawa South. It is the
same kind of killing that is going on in Goma
local government, Logo local government and
Gwer West local government in Benue State.
“It is the same kind of killing we are witnessing
in Wukari and Takum local governmentS in
Taraba State. It is targeted at a particular ethnic
nationality, which is my own people.
“I don’t understand why responsible people
elected to control the governments of Nigeria
will simply turn away from the reality of facing
this matter squarely. And the governor of a state
will even deny that there is no militia in the
state, and yet, there are people who are armed
and they are killing people as they like.
“The Inspector-General will fly by helicopter to a
town, land in the market square and ask people
whether there is militia in this town or not. And
nobody whatsoever seems to call anybody to
order. This is very sad. We have done enough of
a minute silence for innocent Nigerians being
killed.
“I think it has come to a stage where we must
find ways of doing something about this. Maybe
the advice of some nationalists to the people to
find ways of protecting themselves may not be
out of order because a government that cannot
protect people and a military whose presence in
any particular placed means the killing of certain
ethnic nationalities they do not believe in is a
very sad development.
“I think that this Senate will continue to live to
its reputation by condemning this kind of
situation decisively and any other way they can
do something about it through the committees
that have been set to handle this matter.
“Mr. President, I second this motion and pray
that our colleagues will support it whole
heartedly and also support us with ideas on how
we can deal with these issues, otherwise, we are
beginning to see a nation divided on tribal lines
where there are lords and there are slaves, and
lords order the military forces to kill those who
are supposed to be slaves.
“And you know, if there is no justice there cannot
be peace. And people who think that the lords
will be able to sleep peacefully in his house are
wasting their time.
“Very shortly, the slaves will rise up and we will
see a complete show down where the slaves will
fight back because lords cannot kill slaves and
go back and remain in the comfort of their
homes and simply laughing and smiling and
enjoying the wealth of this nation while those
who toil are being killed like goats and beasts in
the field.”
While Senators Solomon Adeola (Lagos West)
and Jeremiah Useni (Plateau South) sought
outright removal of Service Chiefs, Ben Murray-
Bruce lamented that the situation the country
was passing through was worse then what it was
when the Government of President Shehu
Shagari was overthrown in 1983.
According Murray-Bruce, ”The problem is
complete failure of leadership. The tension in
1983 when the government of Shehu Shagari was
overthrown is nothing compared to what is
happening today. Let it be on record that the
way we have conducted ourselves means that
democracy cannot survive.”
Senator Barau Jibrin (Kano North) was
uncomfortable with Murray-Bruce’s contribution
saying that it amounted to canvassing for violent
regime change.
Jibrin cautioned that they should control their
emotion “because lamentation is just enough.”
He insisted that “If government has failed all of
us have failed because we are all part of the
government.”
Senator Useni on his own, wondered why the
Senate would be debating the quarrel between
heads of security agencies.
He noted that report of the Department of State
Service (DSS) against Mr. President’s nominee
was debated by the senate while the quarrel of
heads of two security agencies was also brought
to the senate to discuss.
He said that the heads of security agencies
should take order from the president before they
act
Useni added, “During Sani Abacha regime, he
was meeting with Service Chiefs every week and
there was no room for the Service Chiefs to talk
ill of one another. They spoke with one voice and
ensured effectiveness.
“Instead of the Senate always asking Mr.
President to call the Service Chiefs and heads of
security agencies to order, they should be
removed.”
Senate Adeola (Lagos West), in his contribution
called for the immediate removal from office of
all the Service Chiefs because “they have failed
to proffer solution to incessant insecurity
involving loss of hundreds of lives of Nigerians.”
Senator Adeola noted that President Buhari in
far away London and the United States
Government only yesterday expressed serious
concern about the deteriorating security situation
in Nigeria.
He added that there is “no where that is safe in
Nigeria with the daily killings that the nation is
regaled with.”
He added, “I want to commend the leadership of
the Senate for the Security Summit it organised
recently and the report and recommendations.
But so far the security situation has not
improved and what the president need at this
time is fresh ideas on how to tackle numerous
security challenges confronting the nation.”
He argued that the only way to get fresh ideas
for the President to address the security
challenges is to remove the incumbent service
chiefs to give room for those with fresh ideas
stressing that the nation should do away with
unproductive tenure elongation in areas where
fresh ideas are needed.
“We know the way the military organisations
operates. Those with fresh ideas dare not come
out against their superiors or else their risk
premature retirement from service. So the
current service chiefs should go to allow officers
with fresh ideas address our alarming security
issues.”
Senator Oluremi Tinubu (Lagos Central) noted
that security issues should not be mixed with
party and government.
She lamented that it was obvious that
wickedness was spreading in parts of the world.
Tinubu blamed the situation on individuals being
cold to one another.
Insisting that stakeholders should always preach
peace, she said that the government has done
well.
Senator Emmanuel Bwacha lamented that over
27 people were killed in Taraba State at the
weekend.
He said that over 300 armed militia men invaded
two Taraba villages and killed scores of people.
He said that the country should ask for foreign
collaboration to tackle the problem.
Bwacha said that some people looking for
political patronage would always trivialize a
grave situation in the country for political
advantage.
Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike
Ekweremadu who presided concluded that the
country should take the bull by the horns and
seek foreign assistance to assuage the
worsening situation.
Ekweremadu said, “Deliberately, we have given
this thing the attention and priority it deserves.
As we have pointed out, the primary purpose of
government anywhere in the world is the
preservation of the lives of citizens. If citizens
are being killed, we owe the responsibility as a
parliament to give it the desired attention. And
we will never stop talking about these killings.
Unless it stops, we will never be tired of
speaking about it.
“I have to thank you, distinguished colleagues,
for your patriotic contributions. We have listened
to senators from different parts of the country –
from the East to the West, North to the South –
and we are united in condemning the killings. It
is indeed very regrettable.
“I ask myself, assuming this is happening in
America, in the United Kingdom or France, will it
take all this time to be resolved? As we know
not even in South Africa. But it appears that we
are taking too many things for granted.
“The time has come for us to seek help from
other countries as some of us have suggested
here. We should not be ashamed to ask for help.
The President met with the UK Prime Minister
and she was of the opinion that Britain would
help us security wise. America is also offering to
help.
“We should not be reluctant to come out openly
to say we need help, because what we have now
is a global village. We cannot be asking people
to come to Nigeria and invest their monies here.
They will not! Rather, let us ask them to come
and help us to solve our security problem. If we
solve our security problem, they will come here,
with nobody asking them to come. I think the
first thing to do is to resolve the issue, and it is
something we all need to do, and do it fast.
“We are representatives of the people. If they kill
everybody, we will have nobody to represent; we
will have no job. We are not on appointments, we
are representatives. If we have nobody to
represent, nobody will have a job here. So,
security is more important than any other thing
that we do here.
“If it gets to a level where we have to shut down
this National Assembly and sit down with the
executive for as long as it lasts to resolve the
problem, we may have to do that.
“I am happy that we have spoken today and
everybody is concerned. I just want to appeal
that we do not allow any situation to divide us
as a Senate. Let us continue to speak with one
voice until this matter is resolved.
“It is critical and people are very worried. We
must have a country before we can talk about
elections.”
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