The Senate President, Bukola Saraki has told the Federal Government to involve other arms of government in making the country safe.
Saraki also warned leaders as well as security agencies to quit playing politics and trading blames with the killings going on across the country.
He made this call while speaking at the Summit on National Security in Abuja on Thursday, where he also said that attacks and reprisals in several parts of the country are ”an intolerable cycle of hell that must be broken.”
Saraki explained that no one, organisation or arm of government can single-handedly tackle the hydra-headed monster of insecurity.
He said “killings, kidnappings, mayhem and general lawlessness cannot be the new normal.”
“What our country needs at this time is leadership that will work to douse the flames and reduce tension in the land. It is essential that we lower the barriers in our actions and rhetoric, and refrain from playing politics with a crisis situation in which Nigerian lives are being lost, tragically and needlessly, on a regular basis.
“To the Executive, I say this: you cannot do it alone – and this is why we are all here to join efforts. It is all hands on deck. No one person, organisation or arm of government can single-handedly tackle the hydra-headed monster of insecurity.
“The constitution makes it clear that the safety of lives and property of citizens is the responsibility of government. We, in government must therefore do everything in our power to ensure that Nigerians are safe from harm, and their livelihoods and belongings protected”, he said.
Members of the House of Representatives had on Wednesday, called for the removal of the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, for his failure in tackling the killings in Benue State and also the Police Public Relations Officer, Moshood Jimoh for referring to the Benue State Governor as a ‘drowning man’.
President Muhammadu Buhari has also been criticised by politicians as well as Nigerians for ‘neglecting’ the killings.
The two-day summit is taking place at the NAF Conference Center, Abuja, and is aimed at providing solutions to the security challenges in Nigeria.
The summit brings together a wide spectrum of stakeholders including: political leaders; security policy makers; governors – who are Chief Security Officers in their states; security and intelligence chiefs; key persons in the nation’s security architecture; regional and socio-cultural groups; traditional rulers; civil society organisations (CSOs) and others, ”with strong, persuasive insights into the problem.”
