By Valentine Amanze
- Says resumption, time for action
The Senate on Tuesday resolved to invite the Minister of Police Affairs, Muhammadu Maigari Dingyadi, and Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, over the deteriorating conditions of police colleges across the country.
The resolution was reached after the consideration of a motion on the floor during plenary that was sponsored by Senator Barinada Mpigi (PDP, Rivers South East) and nine others.
The Senate also urged the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, to as a matter of urgent national security intervene in the deteriorating condition of the Police College in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State.
It also urged the Police Service Commission to take adequate measures and inventory of police colleges in the nation to ensure that the standard meets acceptable global limits for efficient policing.
In his motion, Senator Mpigi while highlighting the role of the police in the provision of security, noted that the establishment of police colleges was for the purpose of training effective police officers for the prevention and detection of crimes.
He said, “The Police College, existing in Tai local government area of Rivers State, which serves for the training of police officers across the nation, has been virtually abandoned and at the brink of collapse. Poor staffing management and other facilities make the college unfit for habitation.”
The lawmaker warned that the poor state had made the college to become a dilapidated facility that lowers the morale of trainees.
Senate resumption, a time for action, says Lawan
Meanwhile, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, said on Tuesday that the resumption of the Senate from the two months recess is a time for action.
In his welcome address, Lawan told his colleagues in the upper chamber that “this resumption is a time for action.”
“It is time to proceed on key issues of governance. Our committees shall be our engine rooms. We will do all that is possible to improve their operational efficiency,” Lawan said.
Lawan urged senators to remain united with a view to succeeding despite their political differences.
“We have been able to show through our achievements so far that we are a cohesive Senate, ready to work in the interest of the people, despite our political differences.
“It is important we remain united so that we succeed. Our political parties may be different but we are one Senate – the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“We should not be pulled apart in matters of governance for the sake of our people. The challenges of unemployment, insecurity, illiteracy and inter-ethnic conflict are not partisan challenges,” Lawan said.
The Senate President urged his colleagues to be ready to set the ball rolling on confronting the nation’s challenges through diligent law making, effective representation and thorough oversight of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government.
“The spate of kidnapping, ethnic conflicts, rural and highway banditry, herdsmen and farmers’ conflict and cattle rustling in the land are disturbing to the Senate. It is time we probably review our security architecture.
“The eight session of the Senate set up an Ad-Hoc Committee to review the security arrangement of the country. We will revisit the report of the committee in addition to making new efforts at finding solutions to the security challenges presently facing our nation,” Lawan said.
Lawan urged reform in the educational sector and particularly the implementation of the Universal Basic Education law passed by the National Assembly to guarantee the rights of children to basic education.
He added that the Senate will renew and redouble its efforts on the much awaited Petroleum Industry Bill and tackle the issues of youth unemployment, insecurity and agriculture.
Lawan reiterated an earlier resolve to pass the 2020 budget before the end of December to avoid delays in fiscal and governance processes.
The Senate President said the recent Xenophobic attack in South Africa was a sad development and urges a review and strengthening of the nation’s citizen diplomacy.
He said the case of the $9.6 billion judgment debt against Nigeria is “another reminder on why we should strengthen our processes and procedures so that questionable firms would not take advantage of us.”