Many arms used to commit crimes belonged to govt, says Ribadu
By Jeffrey Agbo
National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, on Thursday said many of the arms being used by criminals to commit crimes were government-owned.
The NSA stated this during the arms destruction exercise organised by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) at Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment Giri, Abuja.
He explained that the weapons ended up in the hands of non-state actors due to corrupt elements within the security agencies.
The NSA condemned the security personnel who facilitate the movement of weapons to terrorists and bandits.
He assured that the government would do everything possible to ensure that the country is safe, secure and protected.
“We have to find a way of putting a stop to this. We must, if we want to recover our country and live in peace and stability.
“The worst human being is a policeman or a soldier who will take arms from his own formations and sell it or hide it out for the bad people to come and kill his own colleagues.
“We must fight these people but also there are merchants of death and evil from outside the world.
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“The proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons remains a major threat to our national security, exacerbating issues such as insurgency, banditry and other violent crimes,” he said.
Ribadu noted that the arms destruction exercise was one of several that has been conducted by the Centre in an effort to address the challenge of arms proliferation in Nigeria.
“All illicit arms, not only unserviceable, all illicit. Any weapon that is taken is out there that is through illegal process.
“We have laws that govern ownership of small arms. If you do not follow it, it is an illegal arm and it is supposed to be destroyed completely,” he added.
Director-General of NCCSALW, retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, said the exercise would witness the destruction of over 2,400 illicit weapons, comprising a mix of unserviceable, decommissioned and recovered arms.
The event was attended by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, representatives of the services chiefs and heads of other security agencies.