Lawmakers in the House of Representatives have commenced the process of preventing the indiscriminate leakage of classified information to the public.
The Green Chamber on Thursday resolved to create a Joint Committee on National Security Intelligence, Information Technology and Defence with a mandate to carry out forensic data storage, data protection and flow of information of all security agencies, and to inspect the level of data security operated by some of the agencies.
The committee is to focus on agencies such as the Nigerian Immigration Service, Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigeria Identity Management Commission and other data collection agencies.
The House resolution followed the adoption of a motion by a member of the Peoples Democratic Party from Oyo State, Adedeji Olajide, who noted that the rate at which classified and confidential documents found their way to the public domain and the social media was worrisome, and urged the House to put measures in place to address the development.
He said, “Our security agents are being attacked by bandits while going for rapid response due to leakage of information, and national security is also compromised.
“The flow of unauthorised classified information and documents to the public domain is now almost at the discretions of a government official; the rate at which classified information spread on social media is disturbing.”
