The Senate has asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to order the immediate recruitment of at least 100,000 new personnel into the Nigerian Armed Forces following a deadly attack on a school in Kebbi State. Lawmakers say the country’s worsening insecurity demands urgent and decisive military action to protect citizens, especially schoolchildren.
The resolution was adopted on Tuesday after a motion of urgent national importance was raised by Senator Abdullahi Yahaya, who represents Kebbi North. Yahaya described the latest attack as a national embarrassment and warned that persistent violence in communities and schools could weaken public confidence in government institutions.
The attack occurred in Kebbi South Senatorial District, where armed terrorists stormed a girls’ secondary school at night. According to reports shared during the Senate session, the attackers abducted 25 students, killed the school’s vice principal, Malami Hassan Yakubu Makuku, and left several others injured before escaping with the abducted girls.
Senator Yahaya said the vice principal was killed while trying to defend the students and prevent the attackers from gaining full access to the hostels. The Senate observed a minute of silence in his honour at the end of the session.
Yahaya described the incident as a “slap on the face of our nation,” stressing that repeated attacks on schools threaten not only the safety of children but also the future of education in northern Nigeria. He warned that fear created by these attacks could discourage many parents from sending their daughters to school.
The Kebbi incident is the latest in a series of school attacks that have plagued Nigeria for over a decade. In 2014, the abduction of more than 200 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State, drew global attention and sparked widespread outrage. Since then, similar kidnappings have occurred in Katsina, Zamfara, Niger, Kaduna, and now Kebbi.
Senator Yahaya recalled a 2022 abduction at another government school in Kebbi State, noting that it took four years for the victims to regain their freedom. He said the recurring nature of these incidents shows that current efforts are failing and must be reviewed.
“This terrorism targeting students must stop,” he told lawmakers. He appealed to President Tinubu to ensure the abductors are tracked down and brought to justice without delay.
In response to the growing insecurity, the Senate urged President Tinubu to approve the recruitment of at least 100,000 additional military personnel. Lawmakers argue that Nigeria’s armed forces are overstretched as they battle terrorists, bandits, and other violent groups across multiple states.
The Senate said boosting the number of troops would help strengthen the military’s presence in high-risk areas, improve response times, and prevent further attacks on schools and civilians.
The Senate also announced the creation of an ad hoc committee to investigate the funding, spending, and overall effectiveness of the Safe Schools Initiative. The initiative was launched in 2014 after the Chibok abductions, with the goal of improving security in schools across Nigeria, especially in the North.
The initiative received significant funding from government and international partners. But many lawmakers now question whether the funds were used properly, given the continued vulnerability of schools.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the recent abduction suggests that the Safe Schools Initiative may not be working as intended. He noted that the latest attack comes at a sensitive time, when the world is watching Nigeria’s security situation closely.
Akpabio compared the Kebbi school attack to the Chibok incident, pointing out that these kinds of tragedies tend to shake national confidence and attract global attention. He said the Senate cannot ignore the failure of past efforts and must now ensure accountability.
Lawmakers expressed deep concern that the rising wave of attacks could worsen instability, especially in rural communities that already face challenges such as poverty, low school enrollment, and limited access to government services.
Many senators argued that if students continue to face the risk of abduction, the country could see a serious decline in school attendance, especially among girls. This could widen educational inequality and hinder long-term national development.
The Senate also said that insecurity has direct economic consequences, as many families may relocate, abandon farmland, or withdraw from economic activities due to fear.
Several senators who contributed to the debate urged security agencies to intensify intelligence gathering, collaborate more closely, and adopt new strategies to counter terrorism and banditry. They insisted that the safety of Nigerian children must be treated as a top priority.
The Senate called on the federal government to deploy all necessary resources to ensure the safe return of the abducted students and to prevent similar attacks in the future.
As Nigeria continues to confront multiple security challenges, the Kebbi school attack has revived painful memories and renewed calls for urgent reforms. For parents, students, and communities across the country, the hope is that the government’s response will be swift, coordinated, and effective.
