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From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja
Northern Senators have called on the Federal Government and Defence Headquarters to urgently reinforce security presence along the Kopre-Sambisa corridor in Adamawa State following attacks on the 226 and 232 battalions by insurgents.
The lawmakers, in a statement personally signed by their chairman, Abdulaziz Musa Yar’Adua, on Sunday described the attacks, which reportedly claimed the lives of three soldiers, a forest guard and civilians, as an assault not only on Adamawa State and the North but on Nigeria as a whole.
They also urged the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the North East Development Commission (NEDC) to provide relief materials and other assistance to communities affected by the attacks.
The call followed attacks carried out on Wednesday and Thursday in several communities across Hong and Gombi Local Government Areas of Adamawa State, including Garaha, Dabna, Bangna, Mubang, Zah, Bitirhuya, Kwapre, Mayo Ladde, Gaya-Dlang, Garkida, Boima and Guyaku.
“We are deeply pained by the reports of killings, abductions of women and children, burning of places of worship, destruction of properties, and the tragic displacement of hundreds of families who were forced to flee their ancestral homes on the eve of our nation’s 66th Independence anniversary,” the Senators said.
According to them, the attacks on the 226 Battalion in Garkida and 232 Battalion in Garaha “are not only an assault on Adamawa State, but an assault on the North and on the Nigerian nation as a whole.”
The Northern Senators Forum therefore called on the Federal Government and Defence Headquarters to “urgently reinforce security presence in the Kopre-Sambisa corridor and adopt a unified, proactive strategy to flush out these criminal enclaves.”
They further appealed to residents of the affected communities to strengthen cooperation with security agencies by providing timely and actionable information that could help prevent further attacks.
“The Northern Senators Forum stands in solidarity with the people of Adamawa State. By our collective efforts, you will not be abandoned to terrorists,” they said.
The lawmakers condemned the attacks, saying, “We condemn in the strongest terms these cowardly acts.”
