Former lawmaker representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District, Senator Shehu Sani, has called on the Federal Government to shift its focus from organizing security summits to taking decisive action against terrorism and banditry ravaging parts of the country.
Speaking on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Sani expressed frustration over what he described as excessive dialogue and insufficient action in addressing the persistent insecurity in Nigeria.
“For us, we have talked too much about insecurity,” Sani stated. “What is needed now is to step up our action, because our efforts as a government and as a nation have not been able to exterminate the activities of bandits and terrorists in our country.”
His comments follow the Senate’s Tuesday resolution to form an ad hoc committee to convene a two-day national security summit in Abuja. The summit is intended to bring together stakeholders from federal, state, and local levels, as well as traditional institutions, to devise new strategies to combat insecurity. Proponents believe such engagement could lead to fresh ideas and a unified national security framework.
However, Sani criticized the move, highlighting that previous summits have not yielded tangible results. “We have had so many talks, summits, and conferences about security,” he said. “Each time you thought [terrorists] had been exterminated, in a few days, you would see them coming out more boldly and daring. So, we have had enough talks.”
The former senator underscored the severity of the security crisis, describing it as a full-scale war against terrorism and banditry that has persisted for over a decade. He stressed that victory in this war was crucial to the unity, peace, and survival of the Nigerian state.
Sani also emphasized that Nigeria is not alone in the fight, pointing to similar struggles in neighboring countries like Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso—nations where military takeovers were, in part, responses to failed efforts to combat insecurity.
In a pointed recommendation, Sani urged the government to modernize its approach by incorporating technology in the fight against terror. He warned that terrorists have evolved in their operations, using advanced tools such as drones, and that Nigeria must keep pace or risk continued devastation.
“Nigeria needs to do something differently or improve on what we are doing. If we don’t destroy these terrorists, they will continue to destroy us,” Sani concluded.
The Senate’s ad hoc committee, under the directive of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, is expected to begin preparations for the summit immediately. However, voices like Sani’s suggest that many Nigerians may be looking for more than just another meeting—they want results.
