Senators lament over increased insecurity, call for removal of service chiefs

Lawmakers at the Red Chambers have again lamented over the state of insecurity in the country and recommended that President Muhammadu Buhari remove the Service Chiefs.

The lawmakers made this known on Tuesday during the debate on the abduction of over 300 students following gunmen’s attack on Government Science Secondary School (GSS) in the Kankara Local Government Area of Katsina State.

This follows the motion raised by one of the lawmakers, Senator Bello Mandiya, from Katsina State.

Senator Sani Musa while seconding the motion said, “There is a need for this chamber to draw the attention of Mr. President that enough is enough, these Service Chiefs should go.

“I am being very honest and talking from the heart. Enough of this thing. I wish the National Assembly will take drastic action on this. We have been appropriating; where are these funds going to?”

Senator Gabriel Suswam during the debate criticised the service chiefs and said lawmakers will support the Senate President in whatever resolution decided to address kidnappings and insecurity in the country.

Senator Opeyemi Bamidele lamented that the Senate has done its best but the executive is not listening and they are becoming helpless. He questioned why  President Buhari has refused to remove service chiefs.

“We know the law and we are committed to protecting the constitution of the country. Today, Nigerians need to be told, we have tried our best but nobody seems to be listening to us. What is the problem in removing Service Chiefs?,” Senator Bamidele said.

The lawmakers, therefore, condemned in strong terms the attack on Government Science School, Kankara, Katsina State.

They urged the President to consider and implement the recommendations of the Senate ad-hoc Committee on Nigeria Security Challenges dated March 17th 2020.

The Senate President in his contribution said, “there is nothing more important for the government to do than securing the lives of citizens of this country. That is the most important function of any government. I could see the level of frustration so to say.”

He added that the legislative arm “should think outside the box” and continue to engage with the Executive arm of government until the appropriate actions are taken.

– Service Chiefs and Insecurity –

The Senate had earlier on December 1 recommended that President Muhammadu Buhari remove the Service Chiefs and replace them with people with fresh ideas and solutions.

The lawmakers asked that President restructure and remodel the entire security architecture and investigate allegations of widespread corruption and leakages within the security architecture.

This was following the attack on rice farmers in Borno State which left at least 40 dead. (Channels TV)