His impassioned speech, delivered amid rising insecurity that has gripped rural communities, demanded an end to what he called “indecision and cover-ups” in confronting armed bandits terrorizing the region.

“We know who these bandits are, we know where they are, we know what they want,” Garba declared, his voice echoing through the hallowed chambers of the National Assembly. 

“If we are going to negotiations, do it and finish it; if we are going to fight, we fight it to finish. What is the big deal? We know everything—why are we covering?”

The outburst, captured on video and rapidly circulating on social media, comes as Kebbi State and much of Nigeria’s North Wes grapples with escalating violence. 

Bandits, often operating as heavily armed militias, have raided villages, kidnapped hundreds, and extorted ransoms, displacing thousands and crippling agriculture in one of the country’s key food-producing areas. 

Just last week, reports emerged of a fresh attack in Kebbi’s Danko-Wasagu local government area, where gunmen killed at least five farmers and rustled over 200 cattle, according to local security sources.

Garba, a first-term senator from the All Progressives Congress (APC) known for his outspoken advocacy on security issues, did not mince words about the intelligence failures he perceives. 

“The security agencies have the names, the hideouts, the demands, these are not ghosts,” he continued. 

His remarks appeared to reference ongoing, secretive negotiations between federal authorities and bandit leaders, a strategy that has drawn criticism for its opacity and perceived ineffectiveness. 

Senate President Godswill Akpabio later acknowledged the urgency, promising to raise the matter in an executive session with security chiefs. “The Senate stands with the people of Kebbi and the North West,” Akpabio said. “We will not tolerate half-measures.”