Juliet Akoje in Abuja
The House of Representatives has called on the Nigerian Police to investigate threats of invasion by bandits and the alleged levies imposed on citizens of Zamfara State with the aim of curtailing the threats and possible attacks.
It also urged the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) to intensify border control measures in order to reduce the high level of arms getting into the country.
The House, after calling on the Nigerian military to further fortify the areas with their increased presence, also urged the Nigerian Air Force to deploy more fighter jets to Zanfara State to adequately suppress the attacks.
This was sequel to the adoption of a motion under matters of urgent national importance raised yesterday by Hon. Suleiman Gumi on the need to curb the frequency of attacks by bandits in and around Zamfara State.
Gumi, while explaining the gruesome and confident ways the bandits attack and extort ransoms from citizens in the northern states despite the presence of security personnel in the affected states, pointed out that the forest in the region and the porous Nigerian border with the Republic of Niger have become a refuge for fleeing bandits.
The House, after observing a minute silence for those who lost their lives during the attacks, also called on the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development as well as the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to augment the efforts of the state government to meet the needs of the displaced citizens caused by the attacks
