Udora Orizu writes that the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, PhD, CFR at the special plenary session on National Security proffered practical solutions to Nigeria’s rising insecurity

“A nation is safest when its institutions collaborate, not compete”.

The above statement implies that national security thrives when the three arms of government stand not as separate pillars, but as one unbreakable shield, thinking together and acting together.

In a rare show of bipartisan unity, the National Assembly this week came together to chart lasting solutions to Nigeria’s worsening insecurity.

Nigeria today stands at a critical juncture, confronted by a complex web of security challenges that continue to test the resilience of its institutions, economy and citizens.

From insurgency in the Northeast to banditry in the Northwest; separatist tensions in the Southeast to farmer–herder conflicts across North Central, the country faces a multidimensional crisis that demands both urgency and strategic clarity. As insecurity continues to spread across several parts of the nation, the federal lawmakers held special plenary session on National Security.

Speaking on Green Chamber floor, on Tuesday, the Deputy Speaker highlighted the multi-dimensional security challenges facing Nigeria, outlining series of actionable and long-term solutions aimed at restoring peace as well as stability.

Kalu called for collaborative action among the federal, state, and local governments, expressing optimism that with sincerity, unity and strong political will, Nigeria can overcome its current challenges.

He noted that Nigeria possesses strong deterrence laws but suffers from weak institutional implementation, inadequate funding, lack of transparency, and misalignment between policy and execution.

The lawmaker detailed the escalating internal security threats, such as indiscriminate kidnappings targeting schools, places of worship and communities in Zamfara, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and other states.

The Deputy Speaker said, “As you all know, Nigerian security crisis as it is at the moment demands urgent action. And I’m able to put down one or two things so that I will not forget in my presentation. I’ll also save time for some of you who want to deliberate on this.

“Mr. Speaker, Honorable colleagues, it is my core finding, and I’m sure that of others, that Nigeria possesses strong deterrence laws. We don’t have paucity of laws. We have strong laws. But what we suffer is weak institutional implementation, inadequate funding, transparency, and misalignment between policy and execution.

“So the solution requires structural legislative reform, not merely reactive military responses. And since we are not in the military, we are legislative arm of government, we must proffer legislative solutions to the gaps that we have observed.

“Mr. Speaker, I will break my speech into these parts. Number one is situational analysis, which I will break into escalating internal efforts. I will break into escalating internal traits as well as external sovereign traits.

“The next one is legislative gap and strategic failures that we have. The third will be priority legislative agenda, what we need to do in the next six months as parliament. And the next will be what are the messaging pillars that I would like to pass as a member of parliament.

“We are the fulcrum of democracy. Doesn’t matter how emotional we get, doesn’t matter how burdensome the problem is, we cannot argue that the Parliament should be shut down because the problem is much. This is the solution hope of the nation. I want to say that we should be careful in projecting what might be misunderstood by the people outside this chamber.

“Mr. Speaker, no problem is too big for the Parliament to handle. We will not shut the Parliament. We will stay here together because we have best friends that are from all over the country. We will find solutions to our problems. We have faced stronger problems before now, Mr. Speaker.”

Challenges and Solutions

Institutional Weaknesses: Nigeria Police Force (NPF) constrained by centralised command, inadequate funding, and lack of accountability. Military modernisation (drones, potential jet acquisitions) proceeding without published defense policy or robust legal framework. Weak border control and inter-agency cooperation enabling illicit arms and terrorism financing

External Sovereignty Threats

U.S. Political Pressure: President Trump threatened military strikes against Nigeria over Christian killings. While analysts view this as political theatre with low operational feasibility, it creates diplomatic and reputational risks. Nigeria must assert sovereignty while demonstrating domestic commitment to justice>

The Amnesty Problem: Despite strong anti-kidnapping laws (imprisonment/death penalty for kidnapping), the practice continues because government entities negotiate with bandits and pay ransoms. Security analysts confirm that amnesty deals and peace negotiations legitimize violence, embolden armed groups, and undermine rule of law. Legislative Solution Required is to ban unstructured amnesty negotiations and ransom payments by any government entity; mandate criminal justice enforcement over expediency.

Police Funding Crisis: the NPF suffers from low budgetary allocation with incomplete and late disbursement, unaccounted state government and private donations creating corruption channels. No transparent auditing mechanisms. Legislative Solution Required is to mandate sustained, predictable funding; require rigorous record-keeping and audits for all NPF funds, including donations.

Centralised Policing Model Failure: Federal-only policing model cannot meet diverse, localised security needs of 36 states and 774 LGAs. Let’s tell ourselves the truth. Whether we call it state police, whether we call it community police, whether we call it local government police, the need to decentralise has become very necessary. State police reform must allow Nigerian police force accountability reform to avoid replicating dysfunctional structure at the state level.

Legislative Solution Required is Constitutional amendment to move policing to Concurrent List (amend Section 214 and Second Schedule). This is currently ongoing. State Police reform must follow NPF accountability reforms to avoid replicating dysfunction at state level.

Drone Warfare Regulatory Lag

Nigeria’s military successfully deploys indigenous (Amebo, Gulma) and foreign (CH-4) combat drones for precision strikes but there is no legal framework governing ethical use, accountability for civilian casualties or operational transparency.

Legislative Solution Required is Enactment of a comprehensive UAS Operations and Oversight Act (Drone Act) mandating compliance with international targeting laws, accountability mechanisms, and independent investigation of civilian casualty incidents.

Anti-Banditry Resolution: Legally prohibit ransom negotiations and mandate criminal justice process over amnesty programs. Criminal penalties for government officials who negotiate ransoms or authorise unstructured amnesty deals. Mandate prosecution through criminal justice system for all banditry suspects.

Establish transparent criteria for any future Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) programs (following proper conflict resolution protocols, not ad-hoc political deals). Create Parliamentary Oversight Committee to monitor implementation.

“As a roundup, finally, these reforms are expensive. That will be the argument of some of you, I will respond by saying, the cause of insecurity far exceeds the cause of reform,” Kalu said.

In tandem with the position of the House, President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday declared a security emergency, ordering the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force to recruit more operatives.

A statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, also requested the National Assembly to begin reviewing the extant laws to allow states that require state police to establish them.

Excerpts from the statement on the president’s directive read:

“Today, in view of the emerging security situation, I have decided to declare a nationwide security emergency and order additional recruitment into the Armed Forces. By this declaration, the police and the army are authorised to recruit more personnel. The police will recruit an additional 20,000 officers, bringing the total to 50,000.

“The DSS also has my authority to immediately deploy all the forest guards already trained to flush out the terrorists and bandits lurking in our forests. The agency also has my directive to recruit more men to man the forests. There will be no more hiding places for agents of evil.

“My fellow Nigerians, this is a national emergency, and we are responding by deploying more boots on the ground, especially in security-challenged areas. The times require all hands on deck. As Nigerians, we should all get involved in securing our nation.

“Let me take this moment to commend our security agencies for working together to secure the release of the 24 schoolgirls in Kebbi and the 38 worshippers in Kwara State. We will continue to sustain the efforts to rescue the remaining students of Catholic School in Niger State and other Nigerians still being held hostage. I call on the National Assembly to begin reviewing our laws to allow states that require state police to establish them,” he said.

*Orizu is SA Press Affairs to the Deputy Speaker

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