FG accepts failure as opposition lawmakers emphasizes on impeachment - Nexus News

The Federal Government, yesterday, acknowledged that Nigerians are fed up with the present security crisis facing the nation.

Speaking after its closed-door meeting, which lasted for over five hours, the National Security Council admitted that the deteriorating insecurity across the country has instilled fears among Nigerians and made citizens move towards seeking self-help.

The National Security Adviser (NSA), Major General Babagana Monguno (rtd), who disclosed this while speaking with newsmen after the meeting led by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, however, stated that the government was presently working on new strategies to control the worsening insecurity in the country.

According to him, the Security Council has acceded on new strategies to curb the menace, promising that there will be a renewed momentum against terrorism.

DESPITE the government’s promises, the National Assembly, yesterday, moved closer to fulfilling its threat to impeach President Buhari, as members of the Minority caucus in the House of Representatives displayed willingness to support the Senate in actualizing the removal of the President.

Rising from a combined meeting with the opposition Senators, leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the House, Ndudi Elumelu, noted that the Presidency would be served the impeachment notice as soon as the six weeks ultimatum is over.

Elumelu stated that his colleagues in the House would not have issues in teaming up with the Senate to actualize Buhari’s impeachment.

Senate Minority Leader, Philip Aduda, revealed that the entire Senate was tired with President Buhari’s failures in terms of insecurity and economy.

The Minority caucuses of the two chambers stressed that they would find constitutional means to issue President Buhari an impeachment notice at the end of the six weeks ultimatum given to him to resolve insecurity in the country.

“The seat of power is no longer safe and we cannot continue to fold our arms till things get out of hand. Recently, Kuje prison was attacked and as if that was not enough, Minister of Education directed that all students should vacate their campuses; similarly, the FCT Minister also directed that schools in FCT should hurriedly close because of insecurity, Abuja is no longer safe and things are standing still,” Elumelu emphasized.

KINSMEN of the NSA has implored President Buhari to, as a matter of urgent national priority, sack the retired senior officer for failing to effectively coordinate the intelligence agencies to provide support in curtailing the worsening insecurity in the country.

The elders, operating under the auspices of the North East Elders for Peace and Development (NEEPD), noted that given the upsurging security situation across the nation, posterity will not be fair to them, if they ceased to speak up loudly.

They insisted that, in times of emergency such as Nigeria is presently, men and women of good conscience must let go of tribal sentiments and other primordial considerations, while putting on the garb of patriotism, with a view to saving the country from ending up into a failed state.

In a press release by their National Coordinator, Zana Goni, and Dr Hassan Ibrahim Monguno, Borno State coordinator, the elders showed serious worries that the Nigerian State may, unintentionally, be sharing sovereignty with terrorists, whose daring tendencies are now experienced in the FCT.

The elders pleaded to President Buhari to sack his NSA, and immediately replace him with a more competent and result-oriented person, as the crisis in the country today, needs emergency surgical operation, if Nigeria must reclaim her dignity as a sovereign entity.

ALSO, the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, yesterday, revealed that the domination of the country’s landscape by terrorists confirms the failure of the present administration.

According to a press release issued by the National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Jare Ajayi, the situation that was revealed within the week has confirmed that those piloting the affairs of Nigeria currently are far away from reality that Nigerians are dealing with.

He said: “Three instances are worthy of immediate recall. First was the drama at the National Assembly on Wednesday, where the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, went against the decision taken during the closed-door meeting of the House’s officials to discuss the security situation with a notice of impeachment to be served on President Buhari.

“By coming out to prevent Senators from discussing the issue, was Lawan working towards putting an end to the menace or assisting it to fester?” Ajayi asked.

“The second point to buttress how deceitful those around President Buhari are included the disclosures by two serving Ministers after the Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja on Wednesday. The Minister of Information, Lai Muhammed, described the threat by terrorists to kidnap President Buhari and Governor el-Rufai as laughable while his counterpart in the Ministry of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, said Nigeria’s economy is doing very well, far better than under the previous administrations.

“What further drove home the fact that President Buhari is not always aware of the reality of the country’s situation was the disclosure by el-Rufai that the President was not aware that terrorists threatened to kidnap both the President and himself until he (el-Rufai) and Governor Bello Matawalle of Nassarawa State told him.

“Yet, the reality around us proved otherwise. We call on the President to wake up to reality. Delegate powers, summon the necessary political will, stop the kid-glove treatment being given to kidnappers and bandits and allow states that are willing to establish their own police forces,” Afenifere spokesman added.

SPEAKING in a similar vein, officials of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the Northwest zone, yesterday, arised from an emergency meeting with a call on security agencies to address the security crisis in the nation.

The position by the party officials came against the backdrop of moves by the National Assembly to start impeachment proceedings against President Buhari over his failure to curb insecurity in the nation.

The APC leaders, led by Governor Bello Masari of Katsina State, after a fact-finding visit of the zone, particularly showed concern over the appalling height of insecurity in Zamfara, Sokoto, Kaduna and Katsina states.

The stakeholders, in a press release in Abuja, admitted that the Federal Government has been very reactive to the needs of security agencies in the country. Nevertheless, they stressed that more needed to be done by security agencies to meet up with the expectations of Nigerians by bringing to an immediate end the issue of insecurity facing every part of the country.