• Boko Haram names appeared on Army recruitment list, says Wase
• Caucus: Arms proliferation in forests worsening N’West crisis
• Govt appeasement emboldening terrorists, S’South lawmakers say
• Senate seeks death penalty for kidnappers, sweeping reforms

Alarmed by worsening attacks, both chambers of the National Assembly yesterday declared Nigeria’s security situation near breaking point, warning that terrorists and bandits now outmatch state forces and calling for urgent intervention, tougher laws and a complete overhaul of the nation’s security architecture.

Lawmakers in the House of Representatives erupted in a rare storm of bipartisan outrage as members from all six geopolitical zones laid bare the depth of the crisis.

They warned that terrorists, bandits, rustlers and armed militias are overwhelming the state while governments at all levels fail to act with courage and urgency.

They spoke during a special plenary session convened to review the national security situation, presided over by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu.
Relatedly, the Senate urged the Federal Government to launch an immediate and comprehensive security intervention in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger States, insisting that kidnapping must attract the death penalty to deter escalating abductions and violent crimes nationwide.

The Senate also recommended urgent amendments to Nigeria’s firearms laws to allow responsible citizens to bear arms for self-defence, noting that similar practices are in place in more than 175 countries.

Speaking on behalf of women and children, Chair of the House Committee on Women Affairs, Kafilat Ogbara, delivered an emotional address, describing the recent Papiri and Kebbi school abductions as a national tragedy and warning that Nigeria is failing its most vulnerable.

“My heart bleeds as I rise this morning. I rise not just as a member of this hallowed chamber, but as a mother, a woman. Yesterday, someone asked: ‘Are we going to wait until our children are kidnapped?’ And I asked myself, the children that were kidnapped are our children.”

She insisted that ongoing killings and mass abductions constitute nothing but terror, stressing that these are not mere security failures but breaches of the most fundamental duties of the state. Ogbara said state governors must stop hiding behind federal security structures.

“The President cannot be everywhere. He cannot be in Sokoto, Zamfara, Ogun or even Lagos, his own state. We need our governors to do more,” she declared.

She called for a national safe-schools protection framework, deployment of security to vulnerable boarding schools, installation of panic alert systems and a federal rescue and rehabilitation fund for abducted children.

Speaking on behalf of the North-West caucus, Sada Soli described the region’s security landscape as complex, structural and multidimensional, rooted in environmental stress and governance failures.

He identified arms proliferation in forested areas and weak enforcement of existing laws as critical factors worsening the situation. He said: “The challenges are not just criminal but structural, rooted in environmental stress, with governance and economic marginalisation. A purely military response won’t be sufficient. We must build trust in state institutions, reform land and livestock governance, and ensure affected communities are part of the solution.”

“The proliferation of arms in the remote forested areas is logistically very, very difficult. Social cohesion has broken down, local authorities have lost legitimacy, and communities are under siege.”

Lawmaker representing Biu/Bayo/Shani/Kwaya Kusar Federal Constituency of Borno State, Aliyu Betara, who spoke for the Northeast caucus, said the region is the epicentre of insurgency and terrorism.

“During my time as chairman of the army and defence committees, we observed that while budgets were large, operational accounts for the police were nonexistent, and capital funding for the army was grossly inadequate. Soldiers and officers cannot perform effectively without proper welfare, equipment and logistics,” he said.

Betara also emphasised the importance of strategic planning, coordinated action and political commitment, noting that the government’s current approach was insufficient to halt insurgency and restore public confidence.

Speaking for the South-South caucus, Bob Solomon of Rivers State criticised what he described as government appeasement of terrorists and kidnappers. According to him, every president since 1999 has shown an embarrassing lack of courage in addressing the crisis.

“We are appeasing terrorists; we are placating them. You can’t negotiate your way out of terrorism. The executive must ensure there is no chaos in negotiations with those engaging in kidnapping and violent crimes.”

Former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase, alleged that the names of Boko Haram members were once discovered on the Nigerian Army recruitment list, warning that such infiltration is undermining the country’s security architecture.

He said the incident reflects deep flaws in Nigeria’s recruitment processes, which have allowed individuals with criminal backgrounds to enter sensitive security institutions.

Wase, who revealed that he lost both a brother and a cousin to terrorists, said such infiltration explains why criminal groups continue to operate freely in many parts of the country. He added that insecurity has become so overwhelming that his surviving younger brother begged him to help secure a transfer out of their community.

He said: “My brother, former chairman of defence, and my very good friend, Betara, will bear me witness that we had moments when, in the process of recruitment, we found in the list names of criminals. Boko Haram members were found in the list of the Army.

“There has to be a thorough way of ensuring that when we are recruiting, those of us who are politicians should recommend people of good character and integrity. That’s the only way we can solve this problem. You find a criminal in the system, and before you know it, whatever you do, you cannot have the problem resolved. So we must change the system and the way of our recruitment.

“Yes, as politicians, it’s good to recommend. This is what we are here for. But when you are recommending, please recommend people of integrity, people who will meet standards and ensure that they give the best service to our country.”

The member representing Borgu/Agwara Federal Constituency of Niger State, Jafaru Mohammed Ali, raised the alarm over bandits taking control of Kainji National Park, putting residents and local infrastructure at severe risk.

The lawmaker painted a grim picture of the park, which he said is now fully under the control of bandits who have displaced rangers and taken over local facilities, including a hotel within the park. “People are migrating out of fear; some are even considering compromising with the bandits simply to survive,” he warned.

Mohammed, who lamented the sophistication of the criminals, said they now employ modern techniques and heavy weapons, making traditional military operations largely ineffective.

He cited multiple incidents, including the killing of a local community leader despite police presence and the kidnapping of several individuals without ransom demands, as evidence of the bandits’ growing power and audacity.

He also drew attention to the long-term threat posed by the bandits’ children, who are growing up in the forest with violent skills and no understanding of law, religion or community values. Mohammed appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for urgent intervention.

Senate seeks death penalty for kidnappers, sweeping reforms
The Senate’s resolutions followed an extensive debate on an urgent motion titled “Immediate Need to Address Escalating Insecurity in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger States,” sponsored by Deputy Senate Leader Lola Ashiru (Kwara South).

Ashiru cited a surge in attacks on schools, worship centres and rural communities, including the November 18 assault on Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), Eruku, where two worshippers were killed and dozens abducted. All were later rescued in combined operations alongside students freed in Niger State.

Lawmakers voiced alarm over mass school closures across five local government areas in Kwara, as well as in parts of Niger and Kebbi, and in all 47 Federal Unity Schools nationwide. “We must act decisively to protect children, worshippers and rural communities from further trauma,” Ashiru said.

The chamber mandated a probe into reports that military personnel were withdrawn from Government Girls Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi shortly before an abduction there. Senators warned that increasingly sophisticated criminal networks are exploiting porous forest corridors across the Kwara–Kogi axis, the Kebbi–Zamfara border and the Shiroro–Rafi–Munya belt in Niger State, aided by internal collaborators supplying intelligence and logistics.

Senator Sani Musa (Niger East) questioned why abductees were rescued “without firing a single shot,” raising fears that ransom may have been paid. He argued that terrorists can only be defeated with modern technology. Musa said agencies such as the Office of the National Security Adviser and the Ministry of Communications should be able to track kidnappers who rely on mobile devices, adding that intermediaries negotiating ransoms must be identified.

Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe accused government officials of withholding the full truth about Nigeria’s security collapse, noting that entire communities in Katsina, Zamfara and elsewhere reportedly pay levies to bandits. “If I were the Commander-in-Chief, I would call for the head of whoever ordered the withdrawal of troops from the Kebbi school shortly before the terrorists arrived,” he said.

Senator Abdul Ningi described kidnapping as “a more lucrative business than oil and politics,” urging the Federal Government to be far more proactive. Another Kwara lawmaker, Senator Sadiq Umar, warned that terrorism cannot be defeated without identifying and prosecuting collaborators.

Lamenting Nigeria’s overstretched forces, Senator Ali Ndume (Borno South) compared the country’s troop levels with Egypt, which has a population of 100 million but fields a one-million-man army, 500,000 police and 800,000 reservists. Nigeria, he said, has fewer than 200,000 soldiers despite having active operations in 32 states, and about 400,000 police personnel.

From Benue, Senator Titus Zam warned that bandits have occupied many communities, displacing farmers. Kebbi Senator Yahaya Abdullahi added, “We know who they are, where they are, the routes they follow. We must pursue and eliminate them.”

Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin emphasised that insecurity has become a national emergency requiring coordinated technological, intelligence and drone-based responses. Majority Leader Opeyemi Bamidele urged unity, while Minority Leader Abba Moro warned of escalating nationwide spread. Former Senate President Ahmad Lawan likened the crisis to war and called for full support for President Bola Tinubu.

The Senate commended Tinubu for cancelling foreign trips to personally coordinate rescue efforts and urged sustained intelligence-led operations, aerial surveillance and forest combing. It recommended a Joint Task Force (JTF) along the Kwara–Kogi corridor, with forward bases in Eruku, Babanla, Oke-Ero, Isanlu and Wasagu in Kebbi.

Lawmakers also directed the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and NEMA to provide immediate relief to traumatised victims and affected communities.

Presenting his motion, Ashiru warned that attackers are now intercepting communications, conducting surveillance on schools and worship centres, and exploiting dilapidated infrastructure such as the Idofian–Omu-Aran–Eruku–Egbe–Kabba highway. He said over 40 abductions in Kwara South alone in 18 months mirror trends across the North-Central and North-West.

He cautioned that failure to act risks mass displacement, long-term psychological trauma, rural collapse and worsening national instability.