Insecurity: Over 277 guns close to NASS – Jimoh Ibrahim

Ondo South Senator, Jimoh Ibrahim, says there are over 277 guns and other assorted weapons in less than 1,000 metres to the National Assembly as at Wednesday.

He disclosed this while speaking on a motion on the suicide attacks in Gwoza, Borno State, which led to killing of 36 persons.

The motion was sponsored by Senator Ali Ndume, Borno South.

Ibrahim lamented the resurgence of suicide bombing, saying the dastardly act that took place in Gwoza on 29th June, 2024 has taken the nation aback and cautioned that living with insecurity was gradually becoming the only way to understand security.

He emphasized the need for deployment of modern technology in tackling insecurity by security agents.

“We cannot allow this trend to continue because of the danger that it portrays. I don’t want to take much of your time, Mr President, but I will say clearly that it costs nothing for the Army to get devices in their phones to know where these notorious criminals live.

“As I’m here, I check my phone regularly and I know the number of guns that are very close to me here. This is just less than 1,000 installations. Within us now, there are over 277 guns around here.

“So what am I saying? We can use technology, just like Senator Ndume has said, it is rather you deploy technology.”

Senate President Godswill Akpabio, on a lighter note, asked Ibrahim, “Prof, you know you have PhD in warfare. Out of the 277 guns around you here at the National Assembly. You know how many of them have bullets inside?

In response, Ibrahim said: “Mr Senate President, we can actually do a probability. If you have 277 guns close to you, with a radius of one kilometer, the probability that half of them have guns is one. And that is dangerous.

“I will need to find out the source of those guns. But because I can locate that there are more close to us and very close to Villa, then I understand we are safe. I want to say very clearly that the military should stop using conventional strategies to fight the insurgency in Nigeria.

“There’s a distinction between conventional strategy and non-conventional strategy. We need to go to non-conventional strategy to fight unconventional war.

“Boko Haram is an unconventional war. It’s not a conventional war. We’re all aware of what happened in Kenya. We cannot close our eyes. We need to wake up. So I finally suggest to you, Mr Senate President, and my distinguished colleagues, that this Senate, under your leadership, sir, must have a closed-door meeting for one day and let’s use the whole day to discuss security matters.

“Our life is very important. The life of man cannot be said to be short, brutish, and unproductive if we do nothing about insecurity. Living with insecurity cannot be the only way to understand security.”