The Senate, on Tuesday, passed a resolution calling on relevant security agencies for the immediate rescue of the 25 students abducted from Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, Kebbi State.
The Senate also urged the urgent recruitment of at least 100,000 personnel into the military to boost the capacity of the armed forces, while setting up an Ad-hoc Committee to probe funds expended so far on the Safe School Initiative.
These resolutions followed an urgent motion sponsored by Senator Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North) concerning the abduction of the students in the early hours of Monday.
Senator Abdullahi described the kidnapping of the female pupils and the killing of the School Vice Principal by bandits as “a dirty slap on the face of the nation,” which must be urgently addressed.
“This is a wake-up call for the country regarding security and safety, because a nation that cannot secure its children is not worth living in,” he said.
He lamented that unless abductions of pupils from schools are ended, the acquisition of knowledge by school-age Nigerians would be seriously undermined, ultimately stunting the country’s growth and development.
Contributing to the motion, the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Mohammed Tahir Monguno (Borno North), described the act as dastardly, emphasizing that all Nigerians must rise against it.
Senator Francis Fadahunsi (Osun East) questioned why banditry and terrorism persist in the country despite the efforts of the President Bola Tinubu-led federal government, warning that the nation must address these crimes before foreign powers intervene.
“The more President Tinubu struggles to end banditry and terrorism, the more kidnappings continue. Crime is spreading every day. Nigerians must stand up against this impunity before we face problems from abroad,” he said.
Senator Sani Musa noted that curbing banditry and terrorism requires urgent recruitment of more officers and men to man ungoverned areas exploited by criminal elements for their heinous acts.
The need to probe the Safe School Programme, implemented after the Chibok girls’ abduction in 2014, was suggested by Senator Ahmad Lawan (Yobe North). He emphasized that since schools are still not fully safe, there is a need to investigate how the funds allocated have been spent and why expected results have not been achieved.
After exhaustive debate, the Senate called for the urgent rescue of the abducted pupils and urged President Bola Tinubu to direct the military to recruit at least 100,000 officers and personnel as soon as possible to strengthen the fight against banditry and terrorism.
The Senate mandated its committees on Finance, Education, and Defence to carry out a thorough investigation of the Safe School Fund and observed a one-minute silence for the Vice Principal of the school, as well as Brigadier-General Uba Musa, killed by ISWAP terrorists in Damboa, Borno State, on Sunday.
In his remarks after the adoption of the resolutions, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, said: “No country is free of crime, not even the United States. But our responsibility is to make laws, pass motions, and take decisions that reduce crime to the barest minimum. Crime is crime; it does not belong to any administration.
“We urge the Armed Forces and all Nigerians with useful information to assist in securing the release of these children and ensuring justice for the victims.”
