President of the Senate, Senator Ahmed Lawan, has joined other Nigerians to lament the rising insecurity in the country.
He wonders why despite heavy investments in the security agencies, the security situation in the country is not getting any better.
“We had hoped that by this time, the security situation in the country would have been better, going by the level of resources already invested by the present administration,” Lawan says.
The Senate President spoke at the meeting of the leadership of the Senate with Service Chiefs, Inspector General of Police, Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and other heads of security agencies, on Wednesday.
He told the Service Chiefs that in view of the enormity of the present security challenges, it is expected that they act swiftly to bring about dramatic changes.
He said that the session was meant “to look into where we are today and probably this current position where we are is most frightening because it is like there is nowhere to hide or nowhere to hold.
‘’Insecurity is everywhere and especially since it is coming to the point of dislocating the security situation where the head of government or where the government is headquartered.
“So we really have to review and see what more we have to do and how differently we have to do,” Lawan added.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, in his opening address before the meeting dissolved into an executive session, said: “Quite a lot has happened and quite a lot is being done to redress the imbalances within the security environment.”
Irabor added that: “I like to very specially thank the President of the Senate and the Senate leadership for this invitation which I consider to be an in-house discussion based on mutual concern regarding very urgent matters that bother our nation.”
Principal Officers of the Senate present at the session included Lawan, Senate Leader Ibrahim Gobir, Deputy Leader, Ajayi Boroffice, Senate Minority Leader, Philip Aduda and Senate Minority Whip, Chukwuka Utazi.
Other Senators at the session included Aliyu Wamakko, Yusuf Yusuf, George Sekibo and Ibrahim Danbaba.
Aside from the CDS, other Service Chiefs at the session included the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Ishiaka Oladayo Amao.
The Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, Director General of the DSS, Yusuf Magaji Bichi, Director General of NIA, Ahmed Rufai Abubakar and the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ahmed Abubakar Audi, were at the meeting.
The National Security Adviser (NSA) Babagana Monguno was represented at the session, as he was said to be attending the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.