NEWS
Apprehension as senate fails to deliberate on Terrorists’ Threats to Abduct, Buhari, El-Rufai, lawmakers
By John Danjuma
The senate’s unusual silence over recent threats by terrorists to abduct President Muhammadu Buhari, Kaduna Governor El-Rufai and lawmakers is creating more fears Nigerians over the state of insecurity that seemed to have overwhelmed every sector of Nigeria.
Two days after terrorist who hijacked the Kaduna-bound train released a video, where they threatened to kidnap President Muhammadu Buhari and Kaduna State governor, Nasir el-Rufai, apprehension heightened in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), leading to the immediate closure of all unity schools in Abuja.
Even the federal Government was panic striken to the extent of ordering the closure of schools over the matter.
Despite the obvious the lawmakers upon their resumption on Tuesday did not give any thought to the issue
The terrorists abducted the train passengers on transit from Abuja to Kaduna on March 28, 2022 had in their latest video that had gone viral identified the Commander-in-Chief of Nigeria’s armed forces and President, Buhari, the Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai and Senators as their next target.
The same video showed the terrorists flogging the remaining defenceless captives in their den as they passed home the disturbing message to shift their focus on Buhari and other top government functionaries including senators.
But surprisingly, the federal lawmakers in the Senate who are directly possible victims on the list with the terrorists did not deem it necessary enough to mention or deliberate on the issue even behind closed doors in an executive session as they returned to work on Tuesday.
At the senate, the lawmakers rather embarked on their routine legislative work, attending to three separate letters from President Buhari for various appointments including the confirmation and approval of the appointments of Justice Olukayode Ariwoola as Substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria.
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Others were requests for them to confirm and approve the re-appointments of 4 Non-Executive Directors of the Central Bank of Nigeria as Board members of the apex bank and the confirmation of Suleiman Afikpo as Commissioner ( South-East ), National Hajj Commission.
An attempt in the House of Representatives to initiate the discussion was countered by the stronger voices who were of the opinion that the handlers of Nigeria’s security should be allowed to do their job.
The silence of lawmakers in both chambers has further heightened the apprehension of many Nigerians who have been on the edge, wondering if the lawmakers are exhibiting signs of being overwhelmed by politics
The National Assembly had through several resolutions had severally drawn the attention of the executive arm of government to the activities of bandits and terrorists in the country, forcing Buhari to overhaul his entire security architecture.
This was as lawmakers granted Buhari express approval for the purchase of military hardwares to boost Nigeria’s fight against insurgency and other criminal acts. All of which seems to have been to no avail and now their reluctance to say a word even as the threats inch closer to their door steps.
The President of the African School of Governance, Kingsley Chiedu Moghalu has admonished state actors against resorting to brutal force in the bid to muscle out separatist agitators.
In the aftermath of Mazi Simon Ekpa, the Finland based Biafran nationalist agitator being caught in legal web and the Nigerian government moving swiftly to seek his repatriation, the former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cautioned that ‘We either fix our problems, or our problems will eventually “fix” us. No alternative to a renegotiated union.’
ALSO READ: Finnish Police Arrest Simon Ekpa Over Terror-Related Allegations
The political economist, while expressing his hope in Nigeria, made it clear that “hope is not a strategy”.
He bared his mind in a series of posts on his verified handle on micro-blogging site, X on Friday.
Moghalu wrote, “Despite sustained contemporary difficulties, I am hopeful about Nigeria. But hope is not a strategy. We need to improve state capacity for effective governance.
“We either fix our problems, or our problems will eventually “fix” us. No alternative to a renegotiated union.
“We must learn to be honest with ourselves and address the root causes of our problems. Why ignore them, when the problem is actually quite solvable? The problem with continuing with this approach is that when the danger crystallizes, those who thought they were benefiting from
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has criticized the federal government’s plan to secure an additional N1.7 trillion loan through Eurobonds to cover a shortfall in the 2024 budget, describing the borrowing as unsustainable and harmful to Nigeria’s economy.
In a statement shared on Thursday via his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Atiku accused the Bola Tinubu-led administration of burdening Nigerians with debt while failing to provide clear answers about the country’s fiscal challenges.
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He also faulted the National Assembly for enabling what he called a “voracious appetite” for loans.
The former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate expressed alarm over a recent World Bank report ranking Nigeria as the third most indebted country to the International Development Association (IDA), calling the development troubling.
“The recent report released by the World Bank, showing Nigeria as the third most indebted country to the International Development Association (IDA), is very concerning,” Atiku stated.
He raised further concerns about the government’s decision to benchmark the proposed loan at an exchange rate of 1 USD to N800, despite the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official rate being over N1,600.
“What makes this particular loan proposal even more concerning is that it is benchmarked at the exchange rate of 1 USD to N800, whereas the current exchange rate from the Central Bank of Nigeria stands at over N1,600 to 1 USD,” he said.
Atiku questioned the need for additional borrowing, given the government’s earlier claims of record-high revenue collection.
“In July this year, Tinubu boasted that the FIRS and Customs under his watch had collected all-time high revenues to finance the budget. Why are they still borrowing?” he said
He accused the government of a lack of transparency, describing the borrowing spree as detrimental to Nigerians already struggling under economic hardship.
“There is something that they are not telling Nigerians, even as they are being crushed by a combination of their failed trial-and-error policies and loan rackets.”
Atiku also referenced a report by BudgIT, a budget monitoring group, which criticized the 2024 budget for its inefficiencies.
He alleged that corruption, rather than infrastructure or development needs, was driving the government’s borrowing decisions.
“These loans are powered by corruption and not for infrastructure and development needs. This voracious appetite for humongous loans is deeply concerning,” he said.
Reflecting on Nigeria’s financial history, Atiku lamented the return to significant foreign indebtedness just years after former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration cleared the country’s debt.
“It is agonizing to see that just a few years after the Obasanjo administration took us out of foreign indebtedness, we are today back at the top spot in the same conundrum,” he stated.
He called for a more cautious approach to borrowing, urging the government to prioritize fiscal responsibility and transparency to avoid worsening Nigeria’s economic challenges.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has taken a historic step, issuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
The charges include crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed during Israel’s recent assault on Gaza.
In a detailed statement, the ICC accused the Israeli leaders of “intentionally and knowingly depriving the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity.”
READ MORE: Osun Govt Decries Attempted Murder Of Park Mgt Chairman By Police
The ICC’s move marks a significant escalation in international scrutiny of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Netanyahu and Gallant are alleged to have orchestrated policies that caused severe harm to the civilian population in Gaza, leading to widespread condemnation from human rights organizations.
Alongside the charges against Israeli officials, the ICC also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif. Deif has long been a central figure in Hamas’s military operations. Israel’s military claims to have killed him in a July airstrike, although this has not been independently verified.
The warrants highlight growing calls for accountability amid the ongoing conflict in the region. The ICC’s actions are likely to provoke heated debate and may complicate diplomatic efforts aimed at resolving the crisis.
With the warrants issued, global attention now turns to how the international community will respond and whether any practical steps will be taken to enforce them.
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