The Senate has condemned the abduction of 87 students and teachers in Borno and Oyo states within 24 hours, describing the attacks as a grave threat to Nigeria’s future and a fresh reminder of the country’s unresolved school security crisis.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele said the incidents underscored the urgent need to fast-track the creation of state police as part of efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture. He made the call in a statement issued on Sunday by his Directorate of Media and Public Affairs.
Gunmen attacked schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State on Friday, abducting dozens of pupils and staff. In a separate incident in Borno State, suspected Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province fighters attacked schools in Mussa, Askira-Uba Local Government Area, leaving several children missing. Local officials and rights groups said the two attacks left more than 80 children unaccounted for.
Bamidele said the attacks were especially troubling because Nigeria had raised about $30 million globally in 2014 under the Safe School Initiative, launched after the Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction, to protect public and private schools from terrorist attacks. He said the recurrence of mass school abductions showed that stronger, coordinated action was needed.
“This is a tragic national concern that negates our development indices. We cannot and must not allow it to continue,” he said.
The Senate Leader said the 10th National Assembly was nearing completion of constitutional amendments that would allow the establishment of state police. He explained that once the National Assembly concludes its work, the proposal would be sent to state Houses of Assembly, where it must be approved by at least two-thirds of the states before taking effect.
Bamidele urged state governments and lawmakers to treat the proposal as a national security priority rather than a partisan, ethnic or religious issue.
Pending the creation of state police, he called on federal and state governments to fully implement the Safe School Initiative as an emergency measure. He also linked the abductions to Nigeria’s worsening out-of-school children crisis, estimated at 18.3 million.
He added that when the National Assembly resumes plenary on June 2, lawmakers will prioritise pending security legislation, including the constitutional review and amendments to the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act, 2022.
