Voice of Nigeria: The Nigerian National Assembly is to provide arms for Sergeant-At-Arm personnel as part of security measures for forestall any attack on the institution.
The Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu made this known when he appeared before the joint adhoc committee on the invasion of the national Assembly by hoodlums last month who forcefully took away the Mace inside the Senate Chamber in Abuja.
Senator Ekweremadu who described the incident as an attack on democracy said the National Assembly would soon propose a bill seeking to arm Sergeant at arm personnel against similar invasion.
“The incident was simply an attack on democracy which required emergency remedies,” Senator Ekweremadu stressed.
While expressing concern over the porosity of the National Assembly as well as the docile nature of various security agencies in the complex, Mr. Ekweremadu called for an overhaul of the entire security structure in the country.
The Deputy Senate President maintained that “for this to be achieved, sergeant at arm need to be kitted properly to avert similar occurrence in the future.”
Earlier, the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah said the committee which was saddled with the responsibility to investigate and ascertain the voracity of the invasion, would recommend to the National Assembly the way forward to secure and uphold the Nations democracy.
Early on the 18th of April, thugs numbering four forced themselves into the Senate Chamber and took away The Mace while plenary was going on, throwing the whole National Assembly into a great confusion.
The incident has been described as a mockery of the country’s democracy, while the lawmakers stressed that the eight assembly was going to make sure that democracy work in Nigeria.
