Published February 14
By Chinwendu Eugene .T.
In a closed-door meeting with service chiefs and some key Ministers discussing rising insecurity, the Senate, on Tuesday night, expressed satisfaction with how the service chiefs have been managing the security situation in the country.
Specifically, the Senate said it was impressed with the determination and focus of the service chiefs in addressing the situation. It urged them to continue to be steadfast in ensuring the security of lives and property.
There has been a rise in insecurity across Nigeria with almost daily cases of killings and kidnappings. Reports held that the closed-door session was held primarily because of the Nation’s worsening security situation.
Reading the resolutions from the meeting, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, stated that the security chiefs and the National Security Adviser (NSA) answered questions bordering on security matters satisfactorily.
He said the Senate commended President Bola Tinubu and the service chiefs for their respective efforts in protecting lives and property in spite of the challenges.
He noted that the Senate urged the service chiefs to take note of the revelations and suggestions made in the course of the meeting, and ensure they are used for future actions.
“We pointed out that the interior minister should work out a unified system of identification; that will be a better thing for Nigerians.
“For the security chiefs, we assured them of not just the support of the Senate, but the entire National Assembly. We passed a vote of confidence on them,” Mr Akpabio said.
The Senate spokesperson, Yemi Adaramodu, while briefing journalists, said: “Today, we listened to them, we related with them, they allayed our fears and answered our questions satisfactorily.”
He reiterated that the Senate has tasked the interior minister on how to apprehend criminals through the standardization of identities of Nigerians.
“We got assurances of increased border patrols, that they must be manned seriously. The finance minister assured that funds will be released expeditiously to the service chiefs. We got that pledge.
“We even suggested inviting the minister of justice to discuss how we can get speedy trials of criminals. With what we heard today, we got assurances that Nigerians will heave a sigh of relief,” Mr Adaramodu said.
The Senate spokesperson re-echoed that a vote of confidence was passed on the service chiefs, adding: “We are impressed with what they have been doing so far. Look at the attack of Bwari, the perpetrators have been apprehended. Look at what they are doing in Ekiti and Plateau states.
“The problem is that the attacks happened sporadically. That’s why we asked them where we can come in; the Minister of finance will release funds to enable the military to get all the gadgets that will help in carrying out their mandates. With the efforts of our security men and women, we believe that Nigerians will soon heave a sigh of relief.”
In attendance at the meeting were the Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa; National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; Chief of Army Staff, Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Naval Staff, Emmanuel Ogalla; Chief of Air Staff, Hassan Abubakar, and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.
Others include Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru; Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle; Minister of Police Affairs, Ibrahim Geidam; Minister of State for Police Affairs, Suleiman Ibrahim; Minister of Finance, Wale Edun; Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo; Director General of the State Security Service (SSS), Yusuf Bichi; and the Director General, National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Abubakar.
