…raise alarm over boko haram unprecedented attack, suspected foreign Influence
By Gloria Ikibah
Tempers flared on the floor of the House of Representatives on Tuesday as Rep. Yusuf Gagdi, member representing Pankshin/Kanam/Kanke Federal Constituency of Plateau State, issued a scathing warning over the state of insecurity in the country, describing the situation as dangerous and potentially explosive. 
The passionate outburst came during a debate on a motion of urgent public importance moved by Rep. Ahmed Satomi, following a recent fire incident at Amuri and a deadly attack on military formations in Borno and Yobe states.
Rep. Gagdi, who is also the Chairman House Committee on Navy, visibly agitated, expressed outrage at what he described as the government’s failure to act decisively on security threats, and accused some public officials of trivializing the real danger on the ground.
The lawmaker warned of a looming backlash if urgent action is not taken by the National Assembly and executive arm to address the worsening security crisis.
He said: “I will send you intelligence of the picture, of the arms and ammunitions, of the platforms that have been taken away by Boko Haram in Nigeria.
“The gruesome pictures trending on social media Boko Haram attacked the military base, killed the military soldiers, burned all the armoured cars. My heart really bleeds when people are talking of 2027 politics. If there is no peace, there is no way you can play your politics.
“And when the leaders, when the governor is crying, or the representative of government, are forced to issue statement, undermining the supremacy of the chief security officer of the state, who knows what is happening in the state, who is crying, and someone within the comfort of his own will say that the governor is raising an unnecessary alarm, we are rascals, Nigerians are killing. This is unacceptable.
“Mr. Speaker, we must stand up and find a way of bringing this issue of insecurity together. Otherwise, you and I is the same. No matter how Nigerians respect us, we are moving to a level that Nigerians will fight us the way they fight criminals and the way they fight Boko Haram”.
In an emotional plea, Gagdi urged his colleagues to stop relying on media statements and start demanding real action from the government.
“Until the right thing is done by us here, until we speak for the Nigerian people, until we draw a line, until we tell government what we are supposed to tell government, and until government responds by action, not by media statement or press statement. Do not bet, Mr. Speaker, that any member of the National Assembly is safe to leave. Not by bondage, not by Boko Haram, but by the people that elected you and I. Time will come, if action is not taken, that Nigerians will take their destinies in their own hands.”
Contributing to the motion, Rep. Zainab Gimba, member representing Bama/Mbama/Kalabalge Federal Constituency of Borno State, raised grave concerns over worsening insecurity in the North-East, highlighting fresh Boko Haram attacks, suspected foreign involvement, and the deadly consequences of munitions storage in civilian areas.
Speaking passionately Gimba described the March 24 attack on a multinational military formation in her constituency as “unprecedented”, and expressed deep concern over the composition of troops stationed at the attacked formation.
“In my constituency, Mr. Speaker, in Mungo, there has been a Boko Haram attack on military formation of the multinational joint task force, where more than 20 soldiers were killed.
“Out of about nearly 100 soldiers in that formation, we have only six Nigerian soldiers. And it is a multinational joint task force where we expect to have, if not equal number, at least substantive number of Nigerian military men,” Gimba lamented.
More alarming, she revealed information shared by the commanding officer of the unit, and linked Nigeria’s deteriorating border security to the withdrawal of Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali from ECOWAS.
“He confessed that even within the Boko Haram insurgents that came, there has been several white men among them. He said so. And that means there is foreign influence in that area.
“It has also posed a lot of threat, especially at the borders of Kalabalge and other borders bordering Nigeria,” she warned.
Turning to the controversial fire incident at Giwa Barracks in Maiduguri, Gimba criticized the military’s lack of clarity. “Some quotas were saying that it’s as a result of… we are given the impression that the fire outbreak came as a result of either a fire source or whatever within the barracks. Because on that particular day, there hasn’t been any Boko Haram attack in Maiduguri.”
She further argued that locating ammunition depots and barracks within city centers poses a public safety risk, and recounted a recent deadly attack.
“For instance Giwa Barracks is located right in the heart of Maiduguri. It has caused a lot of panic, and it would have even generated in burning some parts of Maiduguri.
“These munition formations should stay outside of the cities and towns. They are there to protect the cities, not to stay within.
“On the 28th of April, just this month, in Kalabalge, there was a bridge that was constructed by the community. Boko Haram mounted an IED, a smoke bomb, and it killed over 30 people in that community”, she stated.
She lamented the military’s absence from many vulnerable areas, with civilians left to defend themselves, and issued a strong appeal for action.
“If you go to Kalabalge, we have hundreds of them. It is the civilian JTF and the rangers and the rest that are implementing the IED. Same thing in Gwoza, same thing in Bama. Munition formation in Bama has been attacked. Their ammunition has been scattered.
“Mr. Speaker, these things should not be politicized. Our lives should not be politicized. This House is the last resort our community has. We are coming in here for you to understand that we need the intervention of the National Assembly. This is the last plea I am going to make for you, Mr. Speaker, as the leader, for you to see that these communities are protected, are safe from all these harms”, she narrated.
The debate also drew further contributions from other members, with several calling for a joint intervention by the Committees on Army and Security to visit affected formations.
With fresh calls for drastic measures, the House is now under pressure to respond with concrete oversight and support to Nigeria’s embattled Northeast region.
