As done during the 8th and the 9th National Assembly, the Senate Tuesday, resolved to hold a two – day National Security Summit for lasting solutions to the myriad of problems of insecurity bedeviling the country.
Those to attend the planned National Security Summit shall include delegates from the Federal, States, and Local Governments as well as the traditional institutions to propose legitimate solutions to insecurity and its challenges in the country.
It also resolved that the federal government should use resolutions from the proposed summit to rejig the country’s security architecture through formulation and implementation of very proactive and pragmatic policies.
The resolutions were sequel to a motion sponsored to that effect by Senator Jimoh Ibrahim (APC Ondo South) and co – sponsored by Senators Zam Titus, Senator Peter Onyeka Nwebonyli, Onyeka Peter, APC, Ebonyi North and Senator Ngwu Osita, PDP, Enugu West.
Senator Jimoh Ibrahim in the motion titled: “Urgent Need for a National Security Summit” said that high level of global insecurity is driven by events in Russia and Ukraine and compounded by tensions between the global north and global south which according to him, have worsened food insecurity and affected the attainment of sustainable development goals (SDGs).
He posited that the growing impact of the tariff war in America and the rising emphasis on balance of power by various countries, are reflected in the new international order, concerning immigration and the cancellation of visas by the new regimes, which has necessitated some countries to raise funds by selling citizenship, intensifying economic conflict, and undermining globalization, which the investment the global space has pursued over the last sixty years.
He further noted the significance of power, influence, and authority at the geo-centric level, as such, Nigeria must clarify its strategic engagement in the international arena and the roles of the Senate in advising the executive to help the government achieve substantial value for Nigeria and uphold its sovereignty, as the next world war may not even require the fanfare of militarism, but the i dible growing ic war is gaining ground with destructive innovation in security globally.
The Senate he added, “is aware that recent events in our region have led to feelings of discomfort and insecurity, which has placed the past accomplishments of our security forces at risk even though, our military and its partners are striving to address these challenges, they do not have solutions to the global economic conflict or the effects of new American tariffs and tensions with China.
“As a result, insecurity across Nigeria has become pervasive, impacting on both urban and rural areas, where banditry, ransom kidnappings, and terrorism are pressing issues, across the country as well as other violent crimes.”
According to him, the historical trajectory of political crises, such as the Kano riot of 1953, the Eastern Region constitutional crises of 1953, the census crises of 1962-63, and the Action Group crises of 1962 and 1967-70, the Federal Election of 1964, the Western Nigeria Election of 1965, the General Election of 1979, the executive versus legislative crises of 1981 in Kaduna, and the general election 1983, cannot be forgotten as the election approaches.
He explained further that National Security Summit was very necessary for expertise ideas to compliment President Bola Tinubu’s seriousness on the peace of Nigeria, saying, “there is need for some fact-finding intelligence support for Mr. President’s efforts even of the fact that most military strategies and languages such as Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliet, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, are no longer exclusive to the military.
“No country will allow its citizens to understand security by living with insecurity, therefore, the ideology of peace for all, as outlined in the executive policy leg of the Renewed Hope Agenda should be upheld and promoted.
“To address the challenges highlighted above, it Is imperative that empirical fact-finding National Security Summit is organized by the Senate to assist in providing the requisite platform for exhaustive and far reaching deliberations on the way forward.” (Blue Print)
