{"id":96319,"date":"2025-11-27T14:36:32","date_gmt":"2025-11-27T14:36:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/?p=96319"},"modified":"2025-11-27T14:36:32","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T14:36:32","slug":"insecurity-sacks-senate-committees-senator-dickson-urges-the-president-must-be-told-the-nation-is-at-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/?p=96319","title":{"rendered":"Insecurity sacks Senate committees; Senator Dickson urges, \u2018The President must be told the nation is at war\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Nigerian Senate has dissolved its standing committees on Air Force, National Security and Intelligence with immediate effect. New committees are to be reconstituted within one week as part of a structural overhaul.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Senator Shehu Buba, Chairman of the sacked Senate Committee on National Security and Intelligence.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A day after, former governor and sitting Senator, Seriake Dickson, urged his colleagues to avoid hypocrisy and tell President Bola Tinubu the truth concerning the security crisis in the country.<\/p>\n

The sack of Senate committees comes after the Opeyemi Bamidele (Senate Leader) voiced strong dissatisfaction with the committees\u2019 performance, arguing their oversight on security matters had been inadequate.<\/p>\n

At the same time, the Senate ordered the chairmen of its standing committees on Army, Navy, Defence, Interior and Police Affairs to appear before the Senate in closed-door session within one week. They are required to present detailed briefings on what measures they have taken to curtail insecurity nationwide \u2014 and provide justification for why their committees should remain in place.<\/p>\n

In addition, the Senate launched a formal investigation into the reported withdrawal of security personnel from the school in Kebbi State shortly before a bandit attack. The joint investigative committee \u2014 comprising the committees on Army, Defence, Police Affairs, Interior and Special Duties \u2014 is expected to submit a report within two weeks.<\/p>\n

The chamber also ordered a probe into the killing of Musa Uba (Brigadier-General), tasked to the same joint committee, with findings likewise due within the two-week period.<\/p>\n

Beyond the internal restructuring and investigations, the Senate resolved that its leadership should meet immediately with Bola Tinubu to brief him on the outcomes of its security debate.<\/p>\n

Finally, lawmakers agreed to pursue diplomatic engagement with the United States as part of a broader push to mobilise international support to address the escalating security challenges confronting Nigeria.<\/p>\n

In a fiery intervention during Tuesday\u2019s plenary, the Senator representing Bayelsa West, Seriake Dickson, warned his colleagues against what he described as \u201cunnecessary hypocrisy\u201d and \u201cpolitical sugarcoating\u201d in assessing Nigeria\u2019s worsening security situation. He urged members\u2014especially those in the majority party\u2014to speak frankly to President Bola Tinubu about the true state of affairs in the country.<\/p>\n

Dickson, who later issued a detailed statement, said the Senate\u2019s debate on national security came at a moment when \u201cthe situation in the country\u2026 has worsened in the last few weeks.\u201d According to him, the scale of killings, abductions and coordinated attacks across states \u201care situations that even nations at war do not experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is very clear that not only our democracy is under threat,\u201d he said, \u201cbut the nation itself is being reduced, belittled, and threatened.\u201d<\/p>\n

The former Bayelsa governor strongly opposed a motion\u2014supported mostly by senators from the majority party\u2014which sought to commend President Tinubu and the security agencies.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not agree with the request in the motion\u2026 that the President and the government should be commended,\u201d he declared. \u201cI believe that the President needs to be told the truth\u2026 The seriousness of the matter is such that there should be no sugarcoating.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that such praise would be \u201cill-timed, insensitive and even provocative,\u201d arguing that it does nothing to help victims or frontline personnel.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf things have been so well done, we would not be where we are today,\u201d Dickson said. \u201cHow will the victims, the soldiers fighting, the victims of kidnap and families of those killed feel?\u201d<\/p>\n

Dickson noted that some lawmakers supporting the commendation \u201ccannot visit their communities or their senatorial districts because of insecurity and killings.\u201d<\/p>\n

The senator urged those with direct access to President Tinubu to provide honest assessments of the realities on the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr President must be told that the nation is at war as we are losing our security personnel, our citizens, and our territories,\u201d he warned. \u201cOur reputation is being ridiculed and our democracy and nation are endangered.\u201d<\/p>\n

He argued that Nigeria needs \u201cfrankness, strong political will and decisive leadership,\u201d not flattery.<\/p>\n

Calls for Investigations into Military Decisions<\/p>\n

Dickson backed the Senate\u2019s resolution to probe the withdrawal of military personnel from Kebbi State as well as the abduction and killing of Brigadier General Uba by ISWAP.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must strengthen oversight and ensure that the trillions budgeted are used for the purpose for which they were approved,\u201d he said. \u201cPresidents over the years have released staggering sums of money to the military to fight terrorism.\u201d<\/p>\n

He emphasized that, as a member of the Committees on Defence and National Security, he is committed to ensuring accountability.<\/p>\n

Dickson also accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of repeatedly trying to silence him during plenary.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is one of the many instances the Senate President has tried to prevent me from making my contributions to pressing national issues,\u201d he said. \u201cNo senator is under obligation to say things the way and how the Senate President wants it.\u201d<\/p>\n

He insisted that referencing \u201cthe other side\u201d was standard parliamentary language referring to the majority and minority benches\u2014not an insult.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe presiding officer is the first among equals who moderates as a colleague and not a boss,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n

The senator pledged to continue speaking openly despite what he described as harassment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remind the Senate President and assure the people that I won\u2019t give up or give in,\u201d Dickson said. \u201cI will not be deterred. In fact, I am more determined that democracy, particularly multi-party democracy, must thrive in Nigeria against all odds.\u201d<\/p>\n

He closed with condolences to the families of fallen soldiers and all victims of insecurity, reiterating his support for a unified national response grounded in truth rather than political correctness.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe times call for collaboration as well as honest opinion, advice and patriotism,\u201d Dickson said. \u201cThe Senate must reflect the realities that may not be open to the President.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Nigerian Senate has dissolved its standing committees on Air Force, National Security and Intelligence with immediate effect. New committees are to be reconstituted within one week as part of a structural overhaul. A day after, former governor and sitting Senator, Seriake Dickson, urged his colleagues to avoid hypocrisy and tell President Bola Tinubu the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":93363,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[22,4040,862,756,142,56],"class_list":["post-96319","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-akpabio","tag-committees","tag-dickson","tag-president","tag-senate","tag-tinubu"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96319","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=96319"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96319\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/93363"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=96319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=96319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=96319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}