The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan; and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, have decried the rising spate of insecurity in Nigeria, warning that the existence of the country is under threat.

Both Lawan and Gbajabiamila spoke on Wednesday during a summit organised by the House’ Special Committee on Security chaired by the speaker.

At the event were the President Muhammadu Buhari, represented by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan; Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila; and Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed.

Also in attendance were the service chiefs led by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Leo Irabor; Rear Admiral Awwal Gambo – Chief of Naval Staff; Air Vice Marshal Isiaka Amao – Chief of Air staff; while the Chief of Army Staff, the late Lt.-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, who died in a plane crash on Friday, was represented by the Chief of Policy and Plan of the Nigerian Army, Maj.-Gen. Ben Ahanotu.

Gbajabiamila said thousands of memoranda and other submissions had been received and reviewed, which would form part of the summit’s report and recommendations.

Gbajabiamila said, “Today, at this time in our national history when insecurity threatens the authority of the state and the foundations of our nationhood, we must confront the realisation that our previous and current approaches to addressing the challenges of insecurity have not yielded the desired results.

“Our national house is on fire, and the people we serve rightly expect that we will devote all our energies and resources to trying to improve the future, rather than be paralysed in the present. It is by the work we do now that we can redeem ourselves and save our beloved country. This summit is solution-driven.”

Lawan, in his goodwill message, said, “I want to say here that Nigeria is at a crossroads today. The very essence of the existence of this country is under serious threat.

“I believe that these are threats not only to those areas but the entire nation. And our Armed Forces are doing their best. I must commend our Armed Forces and other security agencies for doing so much with the little we are able to give them.”

The Senate President also called for a review of the laws guiding procurements by the security agencies. He also appealed to the National Assembly to work with the executive and look at how to review the architecture of the nation’s security system for better performance.

Buhari, in his speech read by the SGF, said “security has become a major subject of concern at global, regional and national levels.”

The President partly said, “Our nation has had to grapple with various forms of internal security issues over the past decade in all geopolitical zones. Addressing them effectively to restore safety, peace and security, therefore, remains the responsibility of all Nigerians in and out of public office and our democratic institutions.”