The effort by the federal government to find a solution to the insecurity in the northern part of the country continued on Wednesday with the leadership of the Senate meeting with the service chiefs in the country over the deteriorating security situation.
It is rare to see the service chiefs at the Senate and it was rather obvious that what brought them to the National Assembly had to do with the country’s security.
The Senate President, Senator David Mark, who presided over the meeting, said the service chiefs were at the National Assembly to brief the Senate on the worrying situation.
The service chiefs at the meeting were the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Azubuike Ihejirika, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshall Alex Barde, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Dele Ozoba as well as the Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral Ola Ibrahim and the Director General of the State Security Service (SSS), Mr. Ita Ekepyong.
As soon as the security chiefs entered the chamber, the Senate went into a closed-door session.
Amnesty for Boko Haram
Briefing reporters after the closed-door meeting which lasted for six hours, the Senate spokesperson, Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the security chiefs and heads of security agencies met the Senate with a view to finding a solution to the security challenge facing the country.
Mr. Abaribe, however, failed to disclose whether the meeting explored the issue of amnesty for the members of Boko Haram sect. But a source told Channels Television that the issue of amnesty for members of the fundamentalist sect was discussed during the meeting.
The source, however, said the lawmakers were divided over whether or not to support amnesty for the sect.
The Senate had last week asked the federal government to explore options other than military force in addressing the relentless bomb blasts and attacks in the country.
