Abaribe’s Call For Buhari’s Resignation Sparks Rowdy Session As Senators Back State Police

Abia Senator, Enyinnaya Abaribe, sparked outrage at the Senate on Wednesday when he called on President Muhammadu Buhari to resign from office for allegedly demonstrating inability to address security challenges facing the country.

Abaribe, who is the Senate Minority and the senator representing Abia South senatorial district, called for the president’s resignation while contributing to a motion on rising insecurity in the country moved by the Senate Leader, Yahaya Abdullahi.

The motion which was titled “Nigerian security challenges: Urgent need to restructure, review and reorganize the current security architecture” received the support of 105 senators.

“The hard work that was supposed to be done in Nigeria is not done. We will ask this government to resign because it can no longer do anything in the country,” said Abaribe who is of the minority Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The Abia Senator, who noted that those who live by propaganda will die by propaganda, frowned at the federal government’s longstanding position that Boko Haram insurgents had been technically defeated.

But Senator Abdullahi Adamu of the majority All Progressives Congress (APC) called for caution and warned that there was need for lawmakers contributing to the motion to exercise some level of responsibility.

“If we do not approach this debate with a level of responsibility that it demands we shall be doing more harm than good to this issue of national security,” said Adamu who represents Nasarawa West senatorial district in the upper chamber.

– Senators Call For State Police –

As part of the solution to the insecurity problem in the country, Deputy Senate President, Senator Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, in his contribution, said the situation at hand calls for more focus on community policing in the country.

“The security architecture is over stretched and not as effective as it is. I think there is a consensus, we should be looking into the direction of community policing in Nigeria but we are not so sure of what the structure and component will be like,” said Omo-Agege.

Senator Adamu Aliero, representing Kebbi Central senatorial district, said there was need for Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution to be amended to allow for decentralization of the police and allocate more funds to them to enable them to become more efficient.

“On the issue of state police, our constitution places security on the exclusive list. In this position, we have to amend the various sections of the constitution. If we do not do that, we are putting the cart before the horse.

“It is true that Nigerian Police is overwhelmed so we need to recruit close to about one million officers. This is the way out. The solution now is to pass the police reform bill so funds can be made available for policing of this country,” said Aliero.

Senator Ibikunle Amosun supported Aliero’s position on state police, saying “Each and every state should be allowed to have their own police. We can have federal police as well as we have state police. What we stand to benefit by having governors to be in charge of their security is far more.”

Amosun added: “For everyday security, we need to have our state police to be in place.  We need to do something about our porous borders.”

Senator Remi Tinubu representing Lagos Central Senatorial district, however, advised that states that are buoyant to have their own police should be allowed to do so.

“I have seen what insecurity has meted out to Nigerians and the vulnerable group in particular-women and children. State policing: if we want to go there, we should allow states that are ready.

“If we really want to tackle our insecurity correctly, we should look at state police. I believe in you Senate President to do it this time,” said Tinubu.

But an APC senator representing Taraba Central senatorial district, Yusuf Yusuf, warned that state police could be abused by politicians in high places.

“The business and political class uses police. we must agree that we should not personalize the use of police. Until we define the uses of police, we will continue to have this problem,” said Yusuf.

Similarly, another APC senator, Danjuma Goje, who represents Gombe Central senatorial district, said he was opposed to state police.

“I am against state police because it is going to create more problems. the issue of unemployment in this country must be tackled,” said Goje.