President Goodluck Jonathan has forwarded a request seeking the approval of the National Assembly for an extension of emergency rule in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe beginning from Nov. 12, 2013.
Jonathan’s request is contained in a letter to the Senate President Sen. David Mark, and read on the floor of the Senate on Wednesday.
He said the request was necessary to provide more time for the security agencies to address some of the security challenges still existing in the affected areas.
He said that the approval of a further six months extension of the emergency rule was “pertinent ” because it was expected that normalcy would have been fully restored within the period.
“As a result of the laudable efforts of our security agencies and the support of citizens in the affected areas, we have achieved considerable success in containing the activities of the terrorist elements.
“However, some security challenges still exist in a few parts,” Jonathan stated.
Jonathan said: “In view of the foregoing, I most respectfully request the National Assembly to consider and approve by resolution the extension of the Proclamation of the State of Emergency by a further six months with effect from Nov. 12, 2013.”
The Federal Government declared a State of Emergency in the affected states in May 2013.
