…Asks security agencies to collaborate with state govts

Worried by the worsening state of insecurity in the North West and North Central zones of the country, the Senate, on Thursday, urged President Bola Tinubu, to ensure a review of the modus operandi of the nation’s security agencies in the fight against insecurity in the affected zones.

Consequently, the Senate called on President Tinubu to direct a thorough review and evaluation of the strategies employed by security agencies in the region and consider the deployment of additional security personnel/special task force to the identified hotspots to ensure the protection of lives and properties in the North West and North Central.

The apex legislative Assembly passed the resolution, following a motion titled, “Urgent need to review security approach in addressing banditry attacks in Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kaduna and Kebbi States in the North West of Nigeria.”

The motion, which was sponsored by Senator Nasiru, Sani Zangon Daura (APC, Katsina North) and co-sponsored by thirteen other Senators from the North West, was however, amended to include the North Central during the contributions by the lawmakers.

The Red Chamber also urged the relevant security agencies to collaborate with the respective State governments, local communities, traditional leaders, and stakeholders to gather intelligence and enhance security operations in the affected areas.

It further urged President Tinubu to direct the establishment of a task force to evaluate the effectiveness and implications of negotiating with bandits, conducting a thorough analysis of the short-term gains versus the long-term consequences of such actions.

Moreover, the Senate called on the Military/security agencies to be proactive and innovative in their strategies to secure farmlands so that farmers may return to their farms, thereby ensuring increased food production and food security, thus mitigating the ever-rising food inflation currently being experienced in the country.

While leading the debate on the motion, the sponsor, Senator Nasiru Sani, told the Senate, that Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kaduna, Kano, Jigawa and Kebbi States, had been plagued by escalating banditry attacks, resulting in loss of lives, kidnapping for ransom, displacement of communities and disruption of socio-economic activities.

Sani also noted that the State Governments had allocated significant funds to augment the operations of the security agencies in combating banditry and restoring peace in the region.

He recalled the collaboration and coordination among the State governments, security agencies and relevant stakeholders, to develop holistic and sustainable solutions to the challenges posed by banditry in the North West geopolitical zone.

The politician urged the Senate to take cognisance of the fact that the Governors of the States in the affected region affirmed their commitment to supporting acceptable and workable initiatives that would promote peace, security and development in the region and pledged to work towards fostering a safe and secure environment for their people.

Sani expressed concern that the incessant banditry attacks on communities in the North West region would significantly impact food production and agricultural activities, jeopardizing food security and livelihoods of the people in affected States of the region, especially in the present rainy season.

Contributing, Senator Waziri Tambuwal (PDP, Sokoto), urged the security agencies to be more coordinated in their approach towards tacking the terrorists operating across the country, particularly the North West and North Central, urging that the Federal Government should declare a state of emergency in the concerned states, to enable security agencies to decisively deal with the terrorists.

The Senate Minority Leader, Abba Moro, while contributing, expressed concern that the Ninth Senate held a security summit and came up with recommendations on how the menace of insecurity could be best addressed but nothing had been achieved from that.

Senator Mohammed Muntari (Katsina South), lamented that the bandits had taken over many places in the North West, warning that if nothing drastic was done, they might overrun the whole country.

A former Leader of the Senate, Senator Abdullahi Yahaya (Kebbi North), in his contribution, lamented that the entire North West and North Central were under serious fire at the hands of terrorists, saying that no single Senatorial District in Kebbi state was free from banditry.

Similarly, Senator Abdul Ningi, decried a situation where only about ten thousand bandits were tormenting over two hundred Nigerians, pointing out that there were reports of complexity in the menace of insecurity among security operatives, making it impossible for the terrorists to be wiped out.

Senators Ireti Kingibe (LP, FCT), and Abdulaziz. Yar’Adua and Sani Musa, among others, all spoke, expressing worries about the menacing activities of terrorists in Nigeria, and urged the present administration to do something different to end the nightmare.

In his remarks, the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin, who presided over the plenary, commended the sponsor of the motion, just as he commended President Bola Tinubu, for his efforts towards tackling insecurity in the country.