The Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast received prominent attention yesterday as the National Assembly resumed plenary after two months recess.
Lawmakers from Borno State recounted the attacks on their people and the implications of insurgency on their socio-economic lives .
While the Senate declared that Nigeria was already at war and Senate President David Mark insisted that it must be won, the House donated N200m to the victims’ funds created by the federal government.
The senate unanimously adopted a resolution asking President Goodluck Jonathan to take necessary steps to declare total war on Boko Haram insurgents.
It mandated the leadership of the Senate and senators from the states mostly affected by the Boko Haram insurgency to meet with President Jonathan on the security challenge.
A motion by Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba and 107 Senators entitled: “Threat to national sovereignty and territorial integrity of Nigeria by insurgents” was the tonic the lawmakers needed to call for decisive action against the onslaught of Boko Haram insurgents.
Ndume said, “I read in the Order Paper about a threat. It is no longer a threat. Somebody is occupying the place and he has declared a caliphate.
“Yesterday a new emir was installed by Boko Haram in Dambua. The original emir is taking refuge in Abuja. Boko Haram installed a new emir in Gwosa. Recently we conceded extension of state of emergency and it was because it could get out of hand. Can it get out of hand than what is happening now?
Chairman, Senate Committee on Information, Media and Public Affairs, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said that if the country failed to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency “we may not have any country we can call Nigeria.”
Mark described as a heinous crime, the escalation of violence in parts of the country.
“Regrettably, the Boko Haram sect, these harbingers of death have become more emboldened and daring, killing innocent Nigerians and destroying property at will.”
Mark lamented that from abductions, kidnappings and bombings, the situation has now degenerated to capturing and occupying some parts of Nigeria.
He said added, “In what is obviously intended to humiliate us as a sovereign nation and test our resolve, the terrorists have brazenly hoisted their flags to confirm their assault and affront on our collective will as a nation.
“To put it otherwise is to shy away from the truth. In my candid opinion, the Boko Haram sect has in no unmistakable terms declared a total war on Nigeria and Nigerians.
“Sure, dialogue must not be ruled out but this time around, with this scale of warfare, we must first demonstrate our strength, confront and defeat these terrorists and insurgents before we resort to dialogue.
“I am yet to come to terms with what the Boko Haram Sect actually wants.
“And I dare ask what offence has the Chibok girls or any other school child, a market woman or artisan struggling to earn a living committed that he or she deserves to be felled and decimated daily by the bombs and arsenals of these insurgents?
“This is not the time to willfully castigate or criticize our armed forces and security operatives.
“We must not trade blames or pass the buck. We must not stand divided along any real or perceived fault lines.
He noted that another issue of grave national and international concern is the unfortunate outbreak of the deadly Ebola Virus.
He said, “As if the man-made peril posed by insurgency and terrorism was not terrible enough, a new molecular peril with a potentially more profound lethality arrived from neighboring Liberia in July.
“Although our customs forbid us from speaking ill of the dead, I must say, I deplore the conduct of this vile and irresponsible visitor, Patrick Sawyer.
“His condemnable action has left a huge burden and everlasting scar on the nation.”
He said that what is reassuring is that government has been able to contain further spread of the epidemic.
“One useful lesson from the outbreak of the Ebola Virus is that Nigerians are now more conscious of their personal hygiene.
“This notwithstanding, Government at all levels must now leverage on this preventive measure to check further spread. What this ultimately calls for is good and implementable health care delivery system in Nigeria.
“As schools resume for the new academic session, it is incumbent on all heads of educational institutions to make adequate arrangement to ensure that the Ebola Virus does not in any way spread within the precincts of their schools and put the lives of our children in danger.
“Our hearts go out to the valiant health workers and caregivers who are consistently battling to contain the spread of this disease. We commend the Federal and State governments for the prompt and decisive actions they have so far instituted to stem the spread.
“It is imperative to commend the late Dr. Stella Ameyo Adadevoh, Consultant Physician, for her bravery. But for her being proactive, the late Patrick Sawyer would have spread the virus beyond our imaginations.
“She is indeed a heroine. She deserves a national posthumous honour, and should be duly recognized and honoured by this nation. I pray that God Almighty grants her soul, and those of other caregivers who paid the supreme prize, eternal rest,” he said.
Mark noted that as the 2014 fiscal year draws to a close, the Senate expected that the appropriation bill arrived its chamber, before the end of this month to enable the Senate work on the budget and pass it into Law before January
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