The Committee on Legislative Compliance and Communications on Wednesday has been mandated by the Senate to summon the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami.
The committee was asked to impress on him the need to implement the resolutions of the Senate regarding security related to the mandate of his ministry.
The Senate reached the decision in a resolution, which followed the consideration of a motion on the spate of growing insecurity in Nigeria.
This is coming against the backdrop of a point of order by the PDP Senator representing Taraba South, Emmanuel Bwacha, who expressed concern that bandits, terrorists, and kidnappers were using mobile phones to negotiate for ransoms and getting away with it.
Bwacha, rising under the Senate Rules Order 42 and 52, noted that “the rate of insecurity in Nigeria has not only increased astronomically but has reached a melting point.”
According to the lawmaker, the challenge has manifested in kidnapping, banditry, armed robbery, assassination, and other criminal activities in the country.
“The assassination of Nasarawa State APC Chairman and other high profile cases are still fresh in our memories. A Chinese national was recently abducted in my community, his whereabouts are still unknown,” Bwacha lamented.
He further expressed worry that “there is growing suspicion of the complicity of officials of the state saddled with the responsibility of protecting lives and property of the citizens, but compromised in the process.”
“Senate is concerned that the confidence between the protected and the protector is being increasingly eroded resulting to the breakdown of law and order as demonstrated in the #EndSARS protest, which was subsequently hijacked by miscreants,” he added.
