Daily Independent (Lagos)
Otei Oham
9 July 2009
Abuja — Interior Minister, Godwin Abbe, and Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, have been summoned by Senators to explain what steps are being taken against abductions in the Niger Delta.
Also to appear are State Security Services (SSS) Director General, Afakriya Gadzama, and National Security Adviser, Sarki Muktar.
Kidnappings have continued despite the amnesty offered by Aso Rock.
The resolution on Wednesday was based on a motion brought by Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who urged the government to take youth empowerment seriously to address the root cause of criminality.
Senators urged religious leaders, education planners at all levels, government agencies, and parents to intensify measures that would reverse youth delinquency.
They asked Niger Delta states which have not taken measures against kidnapping to enact law providing stiff penalties.
Ekweremadu lamented the surging incidences of kidnapping and hostage taking of Nigerians and foreign nationals resident in Nigeria and even those who visit Nigeria for the first time.
He recalled that kidnapping has become a daily occurrence since 2005, spreading from the South South to the South East, and has now enveloped the entire country, "up to the fringes of the Sahara desert."
Victor Ndoma Egba (PDP, Cross River) also said the abductions have reached the North, and far outside the shores of Nigeria.
He narrated how some Nigerians recently invited a Japanese businessman to Johannesburg for a deal and later kidnapped him for a ransom.
But Uche Chukwumerije (PPA, Abia) asked politicians to examine themselves first, because they are the patrons of "these groups of disgruntled elements in the society."
He alleged collusion between the security agencies and kidnappers considering the impunity with which they operate.
To solve the crime, Ikechukwu Obiora (PDP, Anambra) advocated the creation of state police, or in the alternative, the full equipment of the existing federal police.
Bob Effiong (PDP, Akwa Ibom) noted that even an employee of the SSS was kidnapped recently.
"We are no longer safe. I do not know where we are heading to. The government should start by alleviating poverty first," he said.
Also on Wednesday, the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions summoned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) and debtor bank Directors to appear before it on July 13.
The summons arose from the adoption of the report of the Committee on the agony of depositors of failed banks and financial institutions.
The report listed a former Governor, a former Minister and former Managing Directors of failed banks as contributors to the collapse of banks.
Senators asked the CBN and the NDIC to arrange a meeting between the Committee and the stakeholders to resolve lawsuits on the cases.
In the report, the NDIC was urged to establish contact with unpaid depositors and invite them to a specified centre for payment.
The Senate resolved that the CBN should re-examine the practice of "Purchase and Assumption" whereby assuming banks are allowed to cherry pick the good assets of failed banks.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 Daily Independent. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
