BY LINUS CHIBUIKE
THE Senate and the nation’s security chiefs are presently holding a closed-door session, over rising insecurity in Nigeria.
The closed-door meeting, which started at 11.22am, is being held to brainstorm on the way forward in the wake of incessant killings, abductions, especially of school children, and banditry, among others, confronting the country.
They are also expected to discuss the implication of the political situation in Chad on Nigeria.
General Lucky Eluoye Onyenucheya Irabor (Chief of Defence Staff), Lt. General Ibrahim Attahiru ( Chief of Army Staff), Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Agambi (Chief of Naval Staff) and Vice Marshal Isiaka O. Alao (Chief of Air Staff) are in attendance at the meeting.
Others are: Acting Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba; National Security Adviser, Babagana Munguno; Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Salihi Magashi (retd); Director-General National Intelligence Agency, Ahmed Rufai Abubakar.
Senate President Ahmad Lawan assured that the Senate would partner the security chiefs to ensure a lasting solution to the security challenges facing the country.
He said this in his opening remarks before the closed-door meeting.
Lawan said, “On behalf of all of us Senators, I want to welcome this team, and let me quickly assure you that indeed this Senate or the entire National Assembly is and will remain a partner in progress with you.
“On behalf of my colleagues, I want to commend our armed forces and other security agencies for fighting the myriad of security challenges across the country. In the process, some have given up their lives.”
He added, “We appreciate what you are doing because we know that you are doing your best with what you have at hand. I want to assure you and everyone that the challenges we face are taken seriously and extremely by the Parliament.
“Hardly a day passes without this Senate discussing one security incident or the other. And it has been so for many years, not only this session.”
He expressed the hope that at the end of the interraction, better ways of confronting the challenges would be fashioned out.
