By Kemi Yesufu
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Defence, Rep. Babajimi Benson, has stated the commitment of his Committee to ensuring accountability and prudence in security spending.
The lawmaker also stated the preparedness of his Committee to work effectively with security agencies, as the task of making the country safe and secure is enormous and must be taken seriously.
Benson in a personally signed a statement sent to Frontline News Online on Sunday, therefore called on the security agencies, to live up to the expectations of Nigerians, for a safe and secure country.
He said the committee is ready to give them the necessary support¸ following the decision of the House to provide a special fund to be approved by the National Assembly outside the national budget for the Federal Government to continue to combat insecurity.
This decision, he said, followed revelations from a security meeting between the leadership of the House and the service chiefs, held on Tuesday, September 23.
Rep. Benson, appointed in July as the chairman of the House Committee on Defence, said the 9th House, especially through his Committee will ensure robust engagements with security agencies, which will result in achieving set goals.
The statement read in part: “I want to call on the security agencies to be ready to cooperate with us as a committee. We are here to work for Nigerians, to ensure the protection of their lives and property. Of course, the security of the people is paramount, that is why we call on the security agencies to cooperate with us.
“On our part, we will work assiduously to ensure that all the operational needs of the security agencies are met through adequate budgetary provisions. This is a new era, and Nigerians will not accept anything less than good results from us all.
“We will also ensure adequate and attentive oversight, especially of the 2019 budget so that we can evaluate the progress of work for ourselves and come up with the necessary ways of improving things as we prepare to receive the 2020 budget.”
“I therefore enjoin all the security agencies under the House Committee on Defence to be up and doing. They should be as open as possible to us as parliamentarians, and we would do the same to them.
“We are not unmindful of the enormous tasks ahead of us and the high expectations of Nigerians on us. We have no reason not to deliver. We must get things right as far as security is concerned in this country.
“We acknowledge that the military needs the support of every sector of the society and we all, from traditional rulers, the media, and citizens, have a critical role to play in assisting the country achieve a secured society,” the statement further read.
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