The senator representing Kogi West, Dino Melaye, raised a Point of Order on the floor of the Senate on Wednesday to report activities of kidnapping along Abuja-Lokoja expressway.
Mr Melaye spoke at the start of plenary.
He stressed the importance of the road to its northern and southern users, complaining that with the growing rate of kidnappings on the road, not enough security attention has been given.
He recounted reports of kidnapping around Aseni and Omoko villages on September 11 where eight people were kidnapped.
On September 18 also, he said, kidnappers took 11 people and destroyed properties of the motorists and on September 24, armed robbers killed eight Nigerians including an Assistant Superintendent of Police and kidnapped 18 people.
Describing the kidnappings as traditional and ritualistic, he called on the Senate to enforce citizen diplomacy which will ensure that lives of every Nigerian will matter.
In his contribution, the Senate Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe (PDP, Abia South), asked what else can be done besides making presentations in the Senate.
“As I stand before you, I don’t know. Most of us still don’t use the Abuja-Kaduna road because of insecurity. This means we have yielded to the bandits.
“Some state governments have even gone to negotiate with the bandits. We are in a big and difficult situation,” he said.
He asked the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu and other security agencies to “be up in their responsibilities.”
In his remark, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, emphasised the need to do something different in tackling insecurity.
He asked the Senate Committees on Communication and Security to liaise with the respective ministries to work and ensure something is done to end insecurity.
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