Senate Urges 100,000 New Soldiers, Calls For $30m Safe-school Fund Probe

The Senate on Tuesday called for an immediate investigation into the over $30 million spent on Nigeria’s safe-school programme.

The red chamber further appealed to President Bola Tinubu to approve the recruitment of 100,000 additional soldiers to confront the rising wave of school abductions nationwide.

These resolutions stemmed from a motion of urgent national importance raised by Abdullahi Yahaya, the senator representing Kebbi North.

Lawmakers’ outrage intensified after Monday’s attack on Government Girls’ Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State, where terrorists killed the vice-principal, injured a school guard, and abducted 25 students despite police presence.

The incident reignited demands for a total overhaul of the nation’s security system and a thorough audit of school-safety funds disbursed since 2014.

During the session presided over by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, proceedings began with a sombre reflection on the attack before senators entered a closed-door meeting to discuss confidential security issues.

A minute of silence was held in honour of the slain vice-principal, followed by prayers for the safe rescue of the kidnapped students.

Adams Oshiomhole, senator representing Edo North, condemned the safe-school initiative, arguing that billions spent by federal, state and donor agencies had failed to secure vulnerable schools.

“What happened to the money earmarked for the safe school programme? People have turned security into business,” Oshiomhole said.

“We cannot monetise the deaths of our citizens. If these funds were properly used, we should not still be witnessing terrorists walking into schools to kidnap children with ease.”

Oshiomhole also urged the swift recruitment of 100,000 new military personnel, insisting that the current manpower is inadequate.

“We don’t have enough men and women in uniform to cover this country,” the former Edo State governor said.
“This recruitment will not only boost our defence capacity but also provide employment for our youth.”

Akpabio endorsed the investigation, stressing that Nigerians deserve full accountability following recurrent attacks on schoolchildren.

“These criminals are going after soft targets. We must find out why the safe-school programme has failed to protect them,” he said.

Ahmad Lawan, a former Senate President, cautioned that Nigeria risks “losing an entire generation” if these attacks persist.

Orji Kalu, senator representing Abia North, urged state governors to share responsibility in security management, citing his own experience in office.

“Security should not only be the job of the federal government. I have never blamed former President Olusegun Obasanjo while I was a governor,” he said.
“I had gone out of my way to help Anambra and other states in terms of security.”

Victor Umeh, senator representing Anambra Central, advocated for technology-driven intelligence to locate and rescue the abducted students.

“This matter is what many people don’t want to discuss anymore. But it is a matter of national importance,” Umeh said.
“They were taken away and are still being moved around. So, we urge security agencies to deploy their technology to find them.”

Simon Lalong, senator representing Plateau South, questioned the performance of the World Bank–supported safe-school initiative, drawing comparisons to the 2014 Chibok kidnappings.

“This is the same fate that befell our Chibok girls. It should be treated as a matter of national security before it turns into another Chibok experience,” Lalong said.

Sani Musa, senator representing Niger East, noted that the armed forces are overstretched and called for greater involvement of community leaders in intelligence gathering.

The Senate agreed to establish an ad hoc committee made up of members from the finance, defence, army, air force, education and police affairs committees to scrutinise all appropriations and expenditures under the safe-school programme.

The Senate also approved an additional motion by Oshiomhole seeking the recruitment of 100,000 youths into the military and the deployment of advanced surveillance and intelligence technology to fight insecurity.