The Senate on Wednesday took an uncompromising stance against the worsening security situation in the country by declaring kidnapping an act of terrorism and prescribing the death penalty for offenders without the option of fines or judicial discretion to reduce sentences.
The resolution followed a charged plenary session sparked by the November 18 attack on the Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku, Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State, where gunmen killed two worshippers and abducted 38 others. Although the victims were later rescued through a joint operation involving the Army, Police, DSS and local vigilante groups, lawmakers said the incident exposed the alarming spread of insurgency into southern communities and the escalating collapse of security in rural areas.
The debate was triggered by a motion sponsored by Senator Yisa Ashiru of Kwara South, who raised concerns over increasing attacks on schools, worship centres and highways in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger states. Senators noted that repeated school abductions had forced the closure of local government schools in parts of Kebbi and Niger as well as several areas of Kwara. They also referenced disruptions in Federal Unity Colleges across the country.
Senator Issa Jibrin of Kogi East warned that Nigeria faced a severe manpower deficit in its security services, noting that the combined strength of the military, police and paramilitary agencies remained far below national needs. He called for urgent upgrades in equipment, intelligence sharing and the creation of a reserve force to support overstretched officers.
Lawmakers further resolved to strengthen registered vigilante groups with federal backing and ordered a review of the firearms law to allow controlled arming of responsible citizens. In a rare move of institutional self scrutiny, the Senate dissolved its Committees on National Security and Intelligence and on Air Force with immediate effect and directed all security related committees to submit written oversight reports within one week.
The chamber also urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to further strengthen coordination, intelligence gathering and rapid response capacity across security agencies. While commending recent rescue operations, several senators queried reports of troop withdrawal prior to some attacks and demanded thorough investigations.
The Senate insisted that kidnapping has now assumed the character of organized terrorism and must be confronted with the full weight of the law to deter future criminality.
