Aisha Yesufu Blasts NASS Over Military Deployment To Benin Republic; Says Shame On Nigerian Senate
Aisha Yesufu, Human rights activist and co-convener of the #BringBackOurGirls movement, has criticised the Nigerian Senate, accusing lawmakers of subservience to President Bola Tinubu following the upper chamber’s swift approval of a request to deploy Nigerian troops to the Republic of Benin.
Yesufu, in a public statement on Tuesday, declared “SHAME ON THE SENATE!”, saying the lawmakers had reduced a once-reverred institution to what she described as a chamber stripped of dignity and constitutional purpose.
According to her, the Senate’s hasty approval of Tinubu’s request — without rigorous debate, interrogation, or assessment —amounts to a mockery of the constitutional powers vested in the National Assembly.
She said: “An institution that should be the voice of the people and the guardian of the Nation has reduced itself to self-enslavement. A hallowed chamber has become unconsecrated chamber.”
The activist condemned the decision as alarming and reckless, especially at a time when Nigeria faces widespread insecurity, economic hardship, hunger, and the overstretching of its already thinly spread military.
“In a time when Nigeria is grappling with rampant insecurity across the country, and economic hardships that has left millions hungry, committing our overstretched troops to foreign interventions is not just misguided; it is recklessly harmful.
“This deployment risks the lives of our brave soldiers, drains scarce national resources that could be invested in domestic priorities like healthcare, education, and infrastructure, and potentially entangles Nigeria in regional conflicts that do not directly serve our interests.
“It sets a dangerous precedent where executive whims override national consensus, further weakening our already fragile institutions,” she said.
Yesufu pointed to the struggles of Nigerian soldiers — poor welfare, inadequate equipment, and neglected complaints —questioning how a government unable to protect its own borders could justify sending troops abroad.
“How can we justify sending our forces abroad when our own borders remain porous,and our people live in fear? When our soldiers have been complaining bitterly of their welfare not being taken care of and nothing done about it? When we have not even equipped our soldiers with the necessary arms needed to defend the territorial integrity of Nigeria!”
She warned that the Senate’s action sets a dangerous precedent, allowing executive power to override national consensus and weakening already fragile democratic institutions.
“The action of the Senate once again exposes the profound threat a weak National Assembly poses to our democracy. As the people’s representatives, lawmakers are duty-bound to act as a check on executive power, not as a rubber stamp.
“By failing to demand transparency, evidence, or accountability, they have abdicated their constitutional role, eroding the separation of powers that safeguards our freedoms. A compliant legislature invites authoritarianism, silences dissent, and betrays the democratic ideals we fought so hard to achieve,” she said.
The vocal critic accused lawmakers of abandoning their constitutional duties by failing to demand transparency and accountability from the executive.
She further warned that Nigeria is watching its democracy erode in real time: “We are watching as our democracy is being eroded, abuse of power, suppression of opposition, mismanagement of resources, loss of credibility of our country in regional and international conversation, threat to federalism and a looming regional instability that can be caused by unilateral decisions sparking conflicts and undermining regional cooperation while doing nothing.
“Let it be known that we are not helpless as citizens, we are enablers of the assault on our democracy and as for the Senators, they have failed in even upholding their constitutional given rights as lawmakers.
“With the display of servitude to Mr. Tinubu, all senators of the 10th Assembly should bow their heads in shame and be stripped of the undeserving title of Distinguished. Those who have not distinguished themselves have no business being called distinguished,” she added.
