The Senate has called on the Federal Government to halt its rehabilitation and reintegration programme for former Boko Haram members, while urging security agencies to step up efforts to arrest and prosecute terrorists and other criminals behind violent attacks across the country.
The decision followed deliberations at Tuesday’s plenary after Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua presented a motion highlighting the increasing attacks, abductions and killings of both serving and retired military personnel, warning that the trend poses a serious challenge to national security and the country’s authority.
The Senate also mandated its relevant security committees to intensify oversight of security agencies and ensure the country’s security chiefs remain fully accountable for tackling the worsening security situation.
The Senate also resolved to send a delegation, led by Godswill Akpabio, to meet with Bola Tinubu over the escalating security challenges facing the country.
While moving the motion, Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua decried the rising attacks on serving and retired military personnel in different parts of the country, saying the incidents have claimed lives, led to prolonged abductions, forced ransom payments, and inflicted emotional and economic hardship on victims, their families and the nation.
To support his argument, the lawmaker referenced several notable incidents, including the abduction of retired Colonel Rabiu Garba Yandoto and his two children on the Gusau–Tsafe Road in Zamfara State on January 1, 2023. He also recalled the kidnapping and eventual killing of retired Major General Richard Chukwudi Duru in Imo State in September 2023, despite a $50,000 ransom being paid.
Yar’Adua also highlighted the killing of retired Brigadier General Uwem Udokwere, who was murdered by intruders at his home in Lokogoma in June 2024. He further recalled the abduction of former National Youth Service Corps Director-General, retired Brigadier General Maharazu Tsiga, who spent 56 days in captivity before regaining his freedom in April 2025.
He further listed the abduction and killing of retired Major Joe Ajayi in Kogi State in May 2025, the kidnapping and eventual rescue of retired Colonel Joseph Ajanaku in Plateau State in January 2026, and the abduction of former Director of Defence Information, retired Major General Rabe Abubakar, who was kidnapped alongside his wife in Katsina State on May 30, 2026, before later dying in captivity.
Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua said the death of retired Major General Rabe Abubakar and other victims in the hands of terrorists was a tragic loss to the nation, adding that the incidents highlight the country’s worsening security challenges.
He cautioned that the rising attacks on both serving and retired military officers by terrorists and other armed groups reflect a disturbing development in the country’s security situation, noting that many of those affected previously occupied strategic operational, intelligence and command positions in Nigeria’s defence structure.
After deliberating on the motion, the Senate urged the Federal Government to suspend the rehabilitation and reintegration programme for terrorists, intensify efforts to apprehend and prosecute those behind violent attacks, and reinforce the country’s security architecture through stricter oversight and direct engagement with the presidency.
