INSECURITY: Senate Vows To Restore Normalcy In South East

The Senate Adhoc Committee on North East/South-East of the Senate National Security Summit 2025, has assured the people of the South East of its resolve to restore normalcy and adequate security in the zone.

Senator Austin Akobundu, the Chairman of the committee, gave the assurance during the security summit on Thursday in Enugu.

The summit is with the theme: “Strengthening Nigeria’s National Security Architecture: Innovation, Collaboration and Resilience in a Changing World.”

The zonal hearing stakeholders were drawn from the traditional and religious institutions, President-Generals of communities, Security agencies, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, civil society, political office holders among others.

He said that the National Assembly would continue to play its role in ensuring that inter-agency collaboration among the security agencies was sustained.

The chairman added that the adequate resources required for the actualisation of all important tasks of restoring the South East to the path of peace, progress and prosperity, would not only be appropriated but also released as and when due.

He thanked the security agencies, religious leaders, traditional rulers, the media and other stakeholders, for their efforts to end the menace in the region.

“I put this clarion call out to them not to rest on their oars but to continue to work in collaboration with one another until our collective goals are achieved.

“To our men and officers in the frontline, your sacrifices will never be forgotten. You are our greatest assets and heroes in this war against extremism and criminality.

“The Senate takes the issues of your welfare seriously. We will continue to seek ways of ensuring that you are sufficiently motivated to execute this all-important task,” he said.

Explaining the significance of the summit, Akobundu said the Senate resolved to organise a National Security Summit to tackle security issues in the country.

He further explained that the summit would enable Nigerians, including those directly affected by the security situation, to make input to the search for a comprehensive and conclusive solution to lingering insecurity in Nigeria.

The chairman pointed out the concerted efforts by stakeholders to stem the tide over the years have yielded no fruits as the security situation keeps getting worse by the day.

“The consequences of such a trend on the victims and the entire populace can only be imagined. Whole communities are traumatised and displaced, farmlands abandoned and schools disrupted.

“The other grave socioeconomic aftermath on our people including spikes in poverty, hunger, disease, and illiteracy.

“It is on this note that agitators in the southeast must be made to understand in no uncertain terms that violence solves nothing and can never be a pathway to self-determination.

“It can only worsen an already bad situation and we are stronger together,” he said.

He noted that the issues of inequity, injustice, marginalisation, unemployment, poverty among others fuelling the agitation for separation must be addressed headlong with sincerity of purpose as a way of curbing the security situation in the region to its barest minimum.

The chairman stressed that the actions of these non-state actors had left the region bleeding as lives were lost, properties destroyed, people displaced.

According to him, schools have no enrollment and even performance in national and international exams where the southeast region had hitherto established itself as an unchallengeable colossus of academic excellence.

“The declaration of Mondays as sit-at-home and the deployment of violence as a strategy by some sections of these agitators have adversely affected the region’s economy and its attendant consequences on our people.

“Unfortunately, not even revered institutions like places of worship, traditional entities and others were spared by the mayhem. The situation is quite worrisome.

“We must, therefore, do everything within our powers to restore normalcy to our highly cherished region and create the enabling environment for our people to thrive,” Akobundu said.

He added that they were in the zone to get more first-hand information on the issue and comprehend it better and work with them to proffer possible, practical, and enduring solutions to the menace.

“The Senate is primed today more than ever before to rely on inputs from this summit to amend and where necessary, repeal existing laws, and make new comprehensive ones to ensure a more secure and prosperous Nigeria”.

In his remarks, the Speaker Enugu House of Assembly, Mr Uche Ugwu, described the summit as an opportunity to listen, understand, and jointly suggest solutions and discover the root cause of insecurity in the southeast.

He emphasised the need to address these issues of insecurity with sincerity and courage, stressing that it required partnerships among governments and communities, security agencies, traditional institutions, youth groups, and civil society organisations.

Noting that open grazing was a ban in the southeast, Ugwu called for adoption of modern technology to address open grazing in the country while the community police should be looked into.