Senate wants Melaye’s security aides restored

The Senate yesterday urged the federal government to restore Senator Dino Melaye’s security details.
Senate’s resolution to this effect was sequel to a motion personally moved by Senator Melaye.
Melaye, who anchored the motion on Orders 42 and 52 of the Senate Standing Rules, said since his security details were withdrawn from him shortly before his arrest on April 23 this year, they have not been returned, exposing him to danger.
He added that efforts made by him to get alternative security details from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) since then were thwarted by the powers that be.
He said: “while we ask that Nigerians should be defended, we ourselves here also ask to be defended.
“I announce that the police withdrew police attached to me even before I was arrested and till date, I have no single security.
“I applied to the civil defence two months ago, civil defence again had been instructed not to provide me security as a citizen not even as a senator.
“ The President by his office is supposed to protect me as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
“I now call that this Senate must make sure that the way Nigerians all over are protected, some of us also have to be protected.
I survived 2 assassinations and there is imminent threat to my life now.” However, his prayer that the Senate should direct the Police authorities to furnish it with names and service number of the 30, 000 personnel deployed to Ekiti state for the governorship election coming up this Saturday was rejected when put to voice votes.
In his remarks, the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over plenary said: “my appeal is that if you are deploying one million policemen they must be seen on the ground so that the protection of life and property must be ensured.