Senate rejects call to summon Service Chiefs, others

For the umpteenth time, the Senate on Tuesday broods over the spate of insecurity in Nigeria and in frustration rejects the call to invite the Service Chiefs and others saddled with the responsibility of keeping the country safe.

The Senate had only last week debated about the gruesome massacre of rice farmers in Zabarmari in Borno, with a resolution calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to sack the Security Chiefs.

Less than a week after, the upper legislative chamber is back at the same point of lamentation.

This followed a motion by Senator Bello Mandiya, (APC, Katsina South); calling Senate attention to Friday’s attack on Government Science Secondary School, Kankara where at least 333 boys were abducted.

Jihadist rebels, Boko Haram has since taken responsibility.

But while the Senate grieved over the Kankara attack, Senator Abubakar Kyari (APC, Borno North) broke yet another tragedy of how Boko Haram on Saturday attacked an IDP camp in neighbouring Niger Republic and killed at least 37 Nigerians there.

The Senate has since 2018 raised more than two dozens of motions, organized at least two Security Summits, reached several resolutions prompting Buhari to act.

The federal lawmakers have lost count on the rituals of “minute silence” for victims even as the Deputy Minority Leader, Emmanuel Bwacha came to the sad conclusion that they have collectively failed the people.

A few others were even more frustrated with the attitude of President Buhari especially in the way he seems to have ignored their previous resolutions on the matter.

This was as Senator Mathew Urhoghide (PDP, Edo South) sought for the signature of one-third of the Senate to compel Buhari to act.

Helpless and hopeless about the situation, the Senate angrily refused the prayers asking it to invite the Service Chiefs, the Inspector-General of Police, Director-General, Department of State Security (DSS), with lawmakers saying I will be a waste of their time.

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, sensed the frustration in the Senate and appealed to lawmakers not to stop talking about the issue and pressing for action.

” I could see the level of frustration but as a parliament we should never get get tired,” he said.

The Senate condemned in very strong terms the attack on Government Science Secondary School Kankara and pleaded again with President Buhari to revisit and implement the recommendations of its Ad hoc Committee on Nigeria’s security challenges.