The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Internal Security, Hon. Garba Ibrahim Muhammad, has revealed that terrorists have issued threats to bomb the National Assembly Complex.Garba made the disclosure on Tuesday during a public hearing on a bill seeking to establish a Legislative Security Directorate — an initiative aimed at improving security management and protecting lawmakers, staff, and visitors within the National Assembly.
“We have received threats from terrorists to bomb the National Assembly Complex and threats from protesters to lock up the National Assembly,” Garba stated. He noted that the legislature, as Nigeria’s seat of democracy, has become increasingly vulnerable to various security challenges, including car and motorcycle theft, vandalism, infiltration by unregistered visitors, and the use of fake identity cards.
Garba warned that if these lapses were not addressed, legislative operations could be severely disrupted, with dire consequences for governance and democracy. “It is obvious that with the ongoing security challenges, if proper measures are not taken, it will truncate legislative activities in the National Assembly. If activities are thwarted, there will be no representation, no oversight, no annual budget, no plenary at all, and that will destabilize legislative procedure, democracy, and the nation at large,” he said.
He emphasized that effective security management requires a coordinated and integrated approach to ensure a safe environment for legislative business.“That is why this bill is very important. It seeks to address all these challenges and adopt world best practices in parliamentary security procedures and architecture,” he explained. The bill, titled “A Bill for an Act to Provide for the Establishment and Functions of the Legislative Security Directorate in the National Assembly (HB 1632),” was considered at the House of Representatives Conference Hall 028 in Abuja.
While stressing the importance of keeping the National Assembly open to the public as a democratic institution, Garba underscored the need to balance accessibility with robust security measures. “The need for effective security measures in the National Assembly cannot be overemphasized because Parliament has to remain accessible to the public. However, this Bill is committed to ensuring the best security architecture in the National Assembly, to protect legislators, staff, visitors, and property,” he said.
He also encouraged state Houses of Assembly across the country to adopt similar frameworks to strengthen legislative security nationwide.“With these few points of mine, I wish us a peaceful and fruitful hearing that will ultimately bring a turnaround in the National Assembly’s security architecture,” he concluded.
