By Charles Pemu 
Amid a deepening national security crisis, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase, revealed on Wednesday, November 26, that members of the National Assembly were under direct threat of abduction by bandits.
Idris Wase’s explosive disclosure came during the resumption of a special plenary debate on national security, where lawmakers across the aisle laid bare the depth of the crisis, warning that terrorists and bandits now outmatch state forces. The Senate, in a related session, declared the security situation near breaking point and passed a resolution to make kidnapping a capital offense punishable by the death penalty.
Against the backdrop of these threats, Wase urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately review his recent directive ordering the withdrawal of police operatives attached to Very Important Personalities (VIPs).
President Tinubu had issued the directive on Sunday, November 23, following a high-level security meeting, instructing police authorities to pull officers from VIP duties to concentrate on core policing responsibilities in vulnerable communities. The move aims to address severe understaffing, particularly in remote areas.
Under the new security arrangement, the Special Protection Unit (SPU) of the Nigeria Police Force has mandated that all officers return “back to base,” with VIPs now expected to request armed personnel from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for personal security.
While acknowledging the good intent of the policy to boost community policing, Wase argued that the wholesale withdrawal risks exposing key officials, who are now direct targets, to unnecessary danger.
He further heightened concerns by disclosing during the debate that suspected Boko Haram members and other criminal elements were once discovered on the recruitment lists of the Nigerian Army and police, warning that this infiltration poses a major, internal threat to national security. He asserted that this claim could be verified by other ranking members of the National Assembly.
Lawmakers across the chamber joined the outcry, emphasizing that a clear definition of categories must be established before fully implementing the police withdrawal directive to avoid endangering those essential to the machinery of government.