The Senate on Wednesday urged the Federal Government to deploy all instruments of national power at its disposal to end the Boko Haram insurrection in the northern part of the country.
The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Mohammed Saleh, (CPC- Kaduna) and 20 other senators on the floor the senate on Wednesday.
Leading the debate, Saleh said that in spite of the assurances by the security agencies, terrorist attacks had continued across the country.
He said the recent suicide bomb attack in Kaduna claimed not less than 13 lives and “destroyed property worth millions of naira, adding that the development had brought untold hardship to victims and relatives.’’
Contributing to the debate, Sen. Gyang Dantong (PDP-Plateau) described as “despicable'' a situation where the terrorists killed other citizens, especially in places of worship.??
“I wonder why in this country when people are worshipping God, others choose to go and kill them. This is the highest sin against God and humanity.
“We are in a state of emergency. Very soon people are going to take the laws into their hands if something urgent is not done,’’ Dantong warned.
Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe (PDP-Abia) said the country was at war with persons bent on breaking up the country.
He suggested that the solution to the security challenge should come from the local environment where the attacks were taking place.
“I do not believe this security challenge will break up Nigeria. What will break up Nigeria is when we fail to do what we are supposed to do.
“Some of our political leaders are paying lip service to the problem while they are funding these criminals,’’ he added.
Sen. Olubunmi Adetumbi (ACN- Ekiti) observed that Nigerians were becoming worried about the seemingly intractable security challenge in the country.
He said the terrorist attacks transcended religious, political and ethnic divides, adding that Nigerians desired a lasting solution to the problem and not compensation.
“We are saying enough is enough. We are talking about the humanity of Nigerians and their entitlement to life.
“Nigerians are not asking for compensation or one minute silence but they are asking for life.
“Nigeria has a challenge but let this challenge not to be seen as a failure of the government, failure of the leadership or a failure of our national institutions,’’ he concluded.
Also contributing, Sen. Chris Anyanwu (APGA-Imo) called for an emergency law to tackle the insurrection.
Sen. Uche Chukwumerije (PDP-Abia) said the governors of the affected state had failed to deploy effective strategies to combat the Boko Haram sect.
“I want to hope that the host communities are not supporting the terrorists. I have not seen any state governor that carries out a robust mobilisation of his people against the enemy within.
He called on the host communities to declare total hostility on the attackers.
Senators Mohammed Maigoro (PDP- Kebbi) and Ita Enang (PDP-Akwa Ibom) called for a supplementary budget to the security agencies to enable them to acquire modern equipment.
The Deputy Senate President, Mr Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over the session, said the senate had a leading role to play toward the resolution of the problem.
He urged the senate joint committees on security to wake up to their oversight responsibilities.
“This is a matter of top priority for all of us. If we don’t deal with this matter then we are heading for anarchy.
“This senate must be in the vanguard to find a solution to this challenge,’’ Ekweremadu added. (NAN)
