Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, on Tuesday demanded that security agencies take responsibility for failing to stop the abduction of 110 schoolgirls in Dapchi, Yobe State, describing as unacceptable, the ongoing buck passing between the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force.

He said rather than trading blame, the various security agencies should strengthen inter-agency collaboration and intensify efforts towards rescuing the girls.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Hassan Turaki, the Speaker further condemned statements credited to both security agencies.

He said: “The statements credited to the army and police in which they tried to exonerate themselves from any culpability in the unfortunate and embarrassing abduction of innocent girls from their school in Dapchi , Yobe State, is highly condemnable.

“This is unacceptable and the House of Representatives, and indeed, Nigerians, will hold the security agencies responsible. They all bear responsibility for this unfortunate incident.”

According to him, “The traumatic experience of the Chibok abduction which is still fresh in our minds should have serve as a warning signal to security agencies to provide adequate security protection to all schools in the North-east.

“I want to use this medium to console the parents of the abducted girls and the entire Dapchi community over this unfortunate incident.

“I also urge all Nigerians and people of goodwill from all over the world to pray for the safe return of the girls.”

His condemnation came on a day the House passed a motion urging the federal government to mobilise every security apparatus, including the army, air force, and the Directorate of State Security (DSS), to rescue the abducted “innocent school students and reunite them with their parents as soon as possible.”

It further asked the federal government to focus additional efforts on providing enhanced security to children schooling in Yobe, Borno and other states in the North-east to forestall further abductions.

The resolution of the lower chamber followed a motion brought under matters of urgent public importance by Hon. Goni Bukar Lawan (APC, Yobe) on the need to rescue the 110 abducted students of Government Girls Technical College, Dapchi in Busari Local Government Area of Yobe State.

The House further mandated its Committees on National Security and Intelligence and Air Force to as a matter of urgency visit Dapchi as well as approved the setting up of an adhoc committee to probe the incident and report back to the House.

The green chamber also observed one-minute silence to sympathise with grieving parents of abducted students as well as the governor of the state.

The motion further invited the service chiefs to brief the House on the security situation in the country.

However, Lawan, in his lead debate, expressed concern that the unfortunate incident had been going on not only in Yobe State but in various part of the North-East, especially Borno and Adamawa States, without any pro-active measure in place to forestall further occurrences.

He particularly expressed shock at the removal of a military checkpoint leading to the affected local government area only one week before the attacks.

Lawmakers generally agreed that the country had not learnt its lessons from the Chibok attack in which some the girls abducted are yet to be rescued.