The Nigerian Senate erupted in a heated debate on Wednesday over the nation’s spiraling insecurity, with Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South) launching a scathing critique of President Bola Tinubu’s administration for failing to hold the military accountable for withdrawing troops from a Kebbi school, paving the way for the abduction of dozens of students. Abaribe, invoking George Orwell’s words, “In times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act,” accused the government of dodging responsibility through excuses and historical deflections, urging a revolutionary commitment to transparency and decisive action.
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The controversy centers on the recent kidnapping at Maga Primary School in Kebbi State, where 24 girls were abducted but later released unharmed. Abaribe lambasted the lack of follow-up, questioning why no one has been sanctioned for the troop withdrawal that left the school vulnerable. “The governor of Kebbi said that somebody ordered troops out, and people were kidnapped. Till today, nobody in Nigeria knows what happened. No questions have been asked, and we are sitting down here as parliament, talking and talking, yet somebody is responsible,” he thundered during plenary.
Abaribe rejected the narrative of enforced patriotism that stifles criticism, mocking the tendency to pivot to past events like the 2014 Chibok girls’ abduction to justify current shortcomings. “We are being told every day to be patriotic. We are being told here that we shouldn’t say anything against. We are being told here, ‘Oh, we shouldn’t talk about the past, we should focus on the present.’ Yet on this floor, while we should focus on what we are supposed to talk about, we go back and say, ‘Oh, during 2014, Chibok Girls happened; we are now rescuing people; people were not rescued at that time,’” he said.
He highlighted stark contrasts in the security landscape, noting that rural-urban flight in Kebbi and rampant kidnappings in Niger were not hallmarks of previous eras. “People in Kebbi were not leaving all the rural areas and coming to urban areas to stay. People in Niger were not being kidnapped. So why do we, anytime we need to talk about the present issues of today, go back to look for excuses for our failures of today?” Abaribe demanded, insisting governance demands confronting uncomfortable truths head-on rather than pacification.
In a bold call for leadership, Abaribe envisioned a no-nonsense approach under his hypothetical command: “If you don’t get me the head of this person who withdrew the troops to put all these children in jeopardy, then you will make an example of him. That is how a country is run.” He stressed, “A country is not run on pacification; a country is run by confronting issues,” and directly appealed to President Tinubu to set a precedent by holding the responsible military commander accountable.
@thenigerialawyer“Somebody Ordered Troops Out, People Were Kidnapped—No Questions Asked” — Sen. Abaribe Calls For Urgent Action
Echoing Abaribe’s urgency, Senator Garba Musa Maidoki (Kebbi South), whose constituency bore the brunt of the Maga attack, expressed relief over the girls’ safe return but warned that unresolved lapses invite repetition. “The issue that must take precedence is: who withdrew the soldiers from Maga Primary School? On whose instruction? The world wants to know, Nigerians want to know, we that are particularly affected want to know,” Maidoki pressed. He emphasized tackling root causes to prevent schools from becoming soft targets, declaring, “If we don’t get to the bottom of this, this incident will keep repeating itself.”
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