Sun. Aug 9th, 2026

Senate

Row in Senate over Defence Minister nominee Screening, members demand stricter questioning amid security crisis

By Dele Fashomi 8 months ago

Tensions flared in the Senate during the screening of former Chief of Defence Staff General Christopher Musa (retd.) for Minister of Defence.

The session grew contentious when some lawmakers pushed for the nominee to be allowed to “take a bow” after minimal questioning, while others insisted on a more rigorous grilling.

The chamber descended into rowdiness as senators stood defiantly, demanding deeper engagement with the nominee.

After several minutes of disruption, Senate President Godswill Akpabio intervened to restore order.

He emphasized that the questioning must be thorough to address public concerns during a time of severe insecurity and directly tasked General Musa to probe the reported withdrawal of soldiers from the Kebbi school recently targeted for abduction.

In his responses, General Musa expressed regret over the nation’s persistent insecurity, labeling it “very unfortunate.”

He stressed the urgency of reinforcing the safe-school initiative, noting many institutions’ vulnerability.

His strategy emphasized a “whole-of-society” approach, combining technology, community capacity-building, and coordinated security operations to end kidnappings.

The nominee also called for improved military accountability and stronger cooperation among government agencies, warning that disjointed efforts make Nigeria a target.

He advocated for a zero-tolerance policy on terrorism, supported by updated laws and a crackdown on unregulated mining, which he identified as a key funding source for criminal groups.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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