Follow Us on Google
Fred Itua, Abuja
Worried by recent upsurge in terrorist attacked across the country, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan has called for the restructuring of the country’s security architecture. He said the current structure could no longer meet the challenges of the moment.
In view of recent escalation of insecurity in parts of the country, the National Assembly would take a definite position on the security situation in the country.
Lawan who addressed National Assembly correspondents, yesterday, disclosed that security will be among the key issues that will dominate discussions when the Senate resumes today, said stakeholders and governments at all levels must join hands together to restore the old security order in the country, where lives and properties were safe.
There has been an upsurge of terrorist attacks in Niger, Kaduna, Kogi, Borno, Adamawa and others in the last one week.
“First and most importantly there is need to look into the issue of security that is bedevilling this country.
“Apparently and obviously, all hands must be on deck to ensure that we bring back a better security situation like we had before.
“Presently in many areas, we have so much happening that is destabilising our communities with the killing of people, and I believe that we owe Nigerians the responsibility to intervene and work with the executive arm of government and other tiers of government, the State and Local Governments to ensure that we change the way that we approach security issues in this country.
“The system has not been working effectively and efficiently and we have to do something. And this time around there shouldn’t be buck-passing, we have to be forthright, we have to say it as it is and we have to do what is required.
“One thing is clear, all hands must be on deck, which includes the Federal, State and Local Governments, and more importantly, the citizens.
“Because wherever you see security improving, the citizens play their own roles very well, but of course, the onus lies largely on government,” he said.
He added that the Senate will as a matter of urgency engage security agencies as soon as it returns from recess to come up with strategies aimed at tackling incidents of killings across states in Nigeria.
“So we are going to work with the Executive arm of government at the Federal level. Actually I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag as they say, but I believe that we should engage with the security agencies in the Senate, to find out why the deterioration in security in many parts of the country.
“We have had series of engagements before, but this time around I think the escalation has made it mandatory that we need to have a definite position as a government, because we just cannot play politics with this as lives are at stake. And therefore, the Senate will take a definite position on how security in this country should be.
“I believe personally that we should restructure the security architecture. The present system does not appear to give us the kind of outcome that we need, and of course whether it is the federal government or state, local government or traditional ruler or what have you, the purpose should be to secure the lives and properties of Nigerians and we will do that,” the Senate President said.
On what Nigerians should expect from the National Assembly upon its return from a six weeks recess embarked on in December 2019, Lawan disclosed that the upper chamber will hit the ground running with the composition of the Constitution Review Committee in a week’s time.
He added that the upper chamber will review the Constitution along lines that will improve on Nigeria’s electoral processes in future elections.
