The Nigerian Senate Adjourned plenary early on Thursday in honour of 44 Nigerian Soldiers killed last weekend by a faction of Boko haram known as the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
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News had filtered out of the North-east last on Monday that the Nigeria Army had suffered several losses after a sustained devastating attack on troops at several military bases.
Senator Bala Na’allah told his colleagues on the floor of the senate that Boko haram fighters invaded a town and killed 44 soldiers one of whom was his cousin.
Reacting to the news, Senator Ahmad Lawan asked rhetorically what manner of protection was available for soldiers on the front line.
“What kind of protection do they have? It is important that we pay surprise visits to them. Let us show these people that even if a soldier dies, his or her family will not suffer.”
Another Senator, Joshua Lidani said the senate needed to do more to support the armed forces;
“We need to do a lot more than we are doing now. We need to visit and show our support. We need to sympathize with them.”
A senator from Ekiti state, Biodun Olujimi however expressed doubts about casualty figures but went ahead to express sadness over the loss of lives.
“It is very sad that we have lost soldiers protecting us, that is just the official number and it may not be accurate. This shows that our priorities in this country are not in order.”
At the end of discussions regarding the slain soldiers and the security situation in the North-east, the senators arrived at five resolutions, which included observing a one-minute silence for the dead soldiers and going on a condolence visit to the families of the dead soldiers as well as to the Chief of Army Staff.
The senators also resolved to;
“Mandate the Committees on Defence and Army to investigate the cause of the killings of the 44 soldiers and to ensure that adequate measures are being taken to curb such killings of our military. A delegation of Senators will visit our soldiers on the battlefield.”
They also resolved to step down all proceedings of the day in honour of the soldiers who lost their lives in defence of the nation.