The National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has said that a sizable number of illicit arms being used to commit crimes in the country originally belonged to the government.

Ribadu said this on Thursday 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 and rained curses on the security personnel who facilitate the movement of weapons to terrorists, bandits and other non-state actors.

He assured that the government would do everything possible to ensure the country’s safety, security, and protection.

“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 hire 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.

“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 said the arms destruction exercise was one of several conducted by the centre in the past, and it was a major focus and a decisive step in the concerted effort to address the challenge of arms proliferation in Nigeria.

The NSA said the federal government had remained committed to providing the necessary support to the centre towards ensuring the safety of every Nigerian.

According to him, by destroying unserviceable, obsolete and recovered arms, we are demonstrating our commitment to a secure future for all Nigerians.

“All illicit arms, not only unserviceable, all illicit. Any weapon that is taken is out there that is through an 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.

The Director-General of NCCSALW, Johnson Kokumo, said the arms destruction exercise was the third in a series since the centre was established and the first since his assumption of command.

Kokumo, a retired deputy inspector general of police, said the challenge posed by the proliferation of SALW was one of the major threats to peace and security in Nigeria and the West African sub-region.

He said the exercise would witness the destruction of over 2,400 illicit weapons, comprising a mix of unserviceable, decommissioned and recovered arms.

“These weapons have been mopped up by the military, police and other security agencies across the country.

“By permanently removing these arms from circulation, we reduce the risk they pose to our communities and send a clear message that Nigeria will not tolerate the illegal trafficking and possession of small arms and light weapons.

“It is also important to state that the National Centre has in its custody some recovered/captured illicit SALW still undergoing tracing as well as investigations and legal processes.

“These include the illicit weapons handed over to the centre by the Nigeria Customs Service.

“These categories of weapons would be destroyed on completion of the proceedings during subsequent routine destruction exercises,” he said.

Kokumo said the destruction had successfully removed thousands of illegal dangerous weapons from circulation with serious security implications for the country.

According to him, this exercise is in line with the provisions of Article 17 of the ECOWAS Convention on small arms and light weapons as well as the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in SALW.

He thanked the NSA and the military for supporting the Centre in meeting its constitutional mandate.

The event was attended by the Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa, representatives of the services chiefs and heads of other security agencies.

NAN