The Senate on Tuesday urged President Bola Tinubu to approve the recruitment of 100,000 fresh military personnel to confront insurgency, banditry and the rising wave of school abductions across the country.
Lawmakers also demanded a full investigation into the Safe School Programme, questioning how funds allocated to the initiative were spent despite repeated attacks on educational institutions.
Their concerns were provoked by the attack on Government Girls’ Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State, where gunmen reportedly killed a vice principal and abducted 25 students.
The debate followed additional prayers raised by Senator Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North) during plenary, which triggered a heated session on Nigeria’s worsening security situation.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio presided over the sitting and later moved the chamber into a closed-door meeting to discuss classified details.
Oshiomhole, while leading the call for massive recruitment and a security audit, warned that the scale of insecurity required a strategic expansion of the armed forces.
He said, “I urge the President and the armed forces to recruit an additional 100,000 military personnel so we can have enough men and women in our troops. It is also another way to create employment for our youthful population.”
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He also demanded answers on the Safe School funds.
“People have turned our security into a business. We should not monetise the death of our people by those living. What happened to the money earmarked for the Safe School Programme?”
Oshiomhole pressed further for a Senate-led probe and enhanced technological capacity for security agencies.
“Again, I urge the FG and the relevant Senate committees to probe the funds appropriated for the Safe School Programme.
“I call on the military to deploy the use of technology and tracking devices to be able to track these criminals,” he urged.
His additional prayer was unanimously seconded and adopted by lawmakers across party lines.
Reacting, Senate President Godswill Akpabio endorsed the call for 100,000 new troops and supported the probe of the Safe School Programme.
“We urge the Federal Government and the Senate committee to probe the spending. Unfortunately, these criminals are going after soft targets.”
Akpabio also cautioned against politicising insecurity. He offered condolences to the victims of the Maga school attack.
“But crime is crime. It doesn’t matter under which administration it takes place. Even the almighty America has crime daily.
“All lives matter. May the souls of our fellow Nigerians and the vice principal who died in the course of protecting the students rest in peace.”
Despite adopting the Safe Schools Declaration in 2015, Nigeria has continued to suffer a decade-long pattern of attacks on schools.
The policy, endorsed by the Federal Government, outlines measures to protect educational spaces during armed conflict.
UNICEF has repeatedly urged full implementation of the declaration, stressing the need for safe and inclusive learning environments.