The Nigerian Senate on Tuesday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently address Nigerians on #EndSARS protest which has been hijacked by hoodlums.
The senate resolved that Buhari should address the nation after Senator Biodun Olujimi cited Order 42 and 52 to seek the leave of the Senate to present a motion on the #EndSARS and the need for comprehensive police reforms.
The motion was supported by the senators, which many of them erring their views on it.
Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, while commending Olujimi for bringing this motion, said he would have thought that the motion should be a Senate’s motion, as all of them in this Chamber were co-sponsors.
“We need to be made co-sponsors because these children who are on the streets are our children. I don’t know of anyone in this country who supports the illegal activity of SARS. I stand here as a victim of SARS. Nobody here is a friend of the illegal activities of SARS.
“When our children went in the streets demanding an end to SARS, I think it is a cry we all identify with and we will continue to identity with provided the protest remains peaceful. It must remain peaceful because it is what the Constitution guaranteed to them.
“What we have today right now is that the very good actions of our children is being hijacked. My own children are in the streets of the U.S. participating in this #EndSARS protest.
“I am not sure that my kids are in support of those who have hijacked this protest to go release prisoners. I urge that they should remain lawful. The protest should remain peaceful while they give government the opportunity to address these demands.
“We don’t want any harm to befall our children. We want to appeal to our children and kids to give this government the opportunity to address this issue.”
Supporting the motion, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said he thought part of what was going to resolve this issue was for the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to look at the issue and address the Nation on them.
“And I think that the people will listen knowing that he has now come out directly to deal with the issue. I suggest also that in doing that, he must try a way of setting up a judicial panel that will have people that are well respected by the same youth so that they can address a certain issue and that issue is those notorious SARS officers that have been identified and even identified by the presidential panel
“I will also forward to you the name of the five most notorious SARS Officers who have been fingered in killing so many Nigerians.”
After other senators presented their views, theSenate resolves to urge all tiers of government to put in place and sustain policies of social economic reforms that raise the standard of lives of our people; call upon the Police to operate strictly in accordance with the rules of engagement appropriate in a democratic environment and urged the Inspector General of Police to ensure a holistic comprehensive reforms of the police to increase the overall welfare, including training and medical insurance of all members of the Nigeria Police Force.
The senate also resolved to appeal to all Nigerians to resort to use of legal institutions to resolving disputes and conflicts and urged the Nigerian youths and the Nigerian citizens to approach the National Assembly Committees Constitution and Reforms in order to secure far reaching holistic amendments that were vital to the restructuring of our federation.
They further resolved to urge the Federal Government to faithfully and comprehensively implement all the five demands of the #EndSARS movement and protesters with necessary timelines to rekindle confidence in government and appealed to #EndSARS movement and protesters to kindly in the interest of everyone stop their actions and embrace genuine dialogue.
The senate urged Buhari to address the nation as soon as possible on this issue while the police should make it a duty to accompany protesters and should be involved in protecting genuine protesters.
