Service Chiefs, Police Inspector-General Send Debate Questions To House Of Reps Members Ahead Of Interactive Session ‘To Save One Another From Embarrassment’
The military chiefs and the Inspector General of Police have shared a seven-page security sector brief with the House of Representatives members, containing the debate questions to be asked during the interactive session today (Tuesday).
In the document titled, “Guiding questions for Hon Members on security sector brief” obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday morning, the leader of the house committee, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, is expected to open the floor of the session.
“Assess how your agency is doing in terms of effective implementation of your mandate? Identify specific areas of challenges and speak to how the National Assembly can assist,” would read the opening question by Ihonvbere.
Thereafter, Bello Kumo, the Chief Whip would ask the second question, “How efficiently are the armed forces and police in achieving their mandate (in terms of time and cost) on the scale of 1-5, 1 being bad and 5 being very good? Give reasons for your answer.”
A top source in the National Assembly who shared the security brief with SaharaReporters stated that the communication ahead of the session was to save both the federal lawmakers and the security chiefs from “embarrassment” during the interaction.
“These are expos reportedly sent by service chiefs to the NASS so they won’t be embarrassed,” he revealed.
law blog last week reported that the House of Representatives was furious over the absence of the service chiefs and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, at the interactive session scheduled for last Thursday during plenary.
The security heads instead sent representatives.
The House had last week scheduled a sectoral debate with the security chiefs as it planned to do with other sectors of the country.
Following a constitutional point of order by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, the House rejected the representation of the security heads and instead postponed the session.
The engagement has been rescheduled to Tuesday next week as the House insisted that the service chiefs must appear at the debate.
The service chiefs are the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa; Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-General Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar, and Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla.
