The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Internal Security, Garba Muhammad, has disclosed that the National Assembly has received threats from terrorists to bomb the legislative complex in Abuja.
Muhammad made this revelation on Tuesday during a public hearing on a proposed bill seeking to establish the Legislative Security Directorate, a specialized agency aimed at strengthening security coordination, protecting lawmakers, staff, and visitors, and preventing possible attacks within the parliament.
However, he did not give the time they received the threat.
According to him, the National Assembly has been grappling with growing security concerns, including cases of car and motorcycle theft, vandalism, the use of fake identity cards, and infiltration by unregistered visitors.
“The National Assembly is going through a lot of security challenges; we have experienced car thefts, motorcycle thefts, vandalism, fake identity cards, unwanted visitors accessing the National Assembly without documentation, petty trading which makes the National Assembly look like a small market.”
Raising alarm over recent developments, Muhammad stated, “We have received threats from terrorists to bomb the National Assembly Complex and threats from protesters to lock up the National Assembly. Legislators are exposed to threats from constituents and others who gained easy access into their offices without any formal appointment.”
“It is obvious that with the ongoing security challenges, if proper measures are not taken, it will truncate the legislative activities in the National Assembly, and if the activities are thwarted, there will be no Representation, no Oversight, no Annual Budget, no Plenary at all, and that will destabilize legislative procedure, democracy and the stability of the system, and our Nation at large.”
Muhammad stressed the need for a comprehensive and coordinated approach to security management within the legislature.
“Effective security management needs a total approach that requires various elements to be integrated together in order to secure our environment for legislative procedure to function effectively and maximally.
He emphasized that the proposed bill was essential to addressing the rising threats and ensuring world-class security standards within the National Assembly.
“That is why this Bill is very important, because it seeks to address all the challenges as aforesaid and adopt world best practices of parliamentary security procedures and architecture.”
“In conclusion, the need for effective security measures in the National Assembly cannot be overemphasized. This is because Parliament has to be accessible to the public in order to uphold democratic values, making it difficult to implement stringent security measures without affecting others’ interest.
“However, this Bill is committed to ensuring the best security architecture in the National Assembly, to protect Legislators, Staff, Visitors and Property.
“I also want to admonish our States House of Assembly to imbibe the same.”
