A Security Consultant and former consultant to the Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons, High Chief Darlinghtyn Momoh Umoru has called on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President BolaTinubu, to pass a marching order to the Comptroller General of Customs, Adeniyi Bashir to immediately relocate his office to the land borders.
Addressing the press, the security consultant lamented that the clarion call became most necessary due to the illicit movement of small arm and light weapons that have led to its proliferation across Nigeria.
In his words, research has shown that most of the illicit weapons in the hands of the non state actors like Boko Haram, ISWAP and bandits in Nigeria find their ways in through the land borders.
“The Nigerian military are doing their best tackling insurgency but all other intelligence agencies must also be up and doing to compliment the genuine efforts of the military in winning the fight.
One of the constitutional responsibilities of the Nigerian Customs is to checkmate the movement of goods in and out of the country. Among such goods are the illicit movement of prohibited items by the Nigeria laws which includes small arms and light weapons.
The proliferation of arms in civilian hands is perhaps the readiest sign that the Nigerian state has vastly receded in terms of inability to defend its territory as well as the lives and property of citizens. Since Nigeria has no constitutional provision on the right to bear arms, all such weapons in the hands of civilians remain illegal except by license for hunting and other sport. While the state officially remains the ultimate protector of the citizenry, it is a task that can only be performed by paying serious attention to what happens at our borders.
Nigeria, according to many reports, accounts for at least 70 per cent of the illegal SALWs circulating within the West African sub-region most of them in the hands of non state actors. It stands to reason that with access to abundant illegal weapons the rogue elements in our midst have become more fortified and hence less amenable to entreaties to make peace. With these illegal firearms, violent crime is no longer just social deviance but a thriving enterprise by many unscrupulous Nigerians with dire consequences for peace and national security. To counterbalance the threat to life and property by these armed criminals, individual citizens have resorted to the acquisition of arms for personal security and protection. In several communities around the country, the deployment of armed vigilantes and traditional hunters armed with modern weapons has become commonplace.
Hardly a week passes that the Nigeria Customs Services (NCS) would not announce seizure of large cache of arms and ammunition. Recently the Service intercepted and seized 844 units of rifles, and 112,500 pieces of live ammunition valued at N4.17 billion being smuggled into the country through the Onne Port. These include 764 units of Tomahawk Jojef Magnum Black Pump Action Rifles, 10 units of VC Verney Carron Gunmakers Jojef Magnum silver pump-action rifles, 50 units of VC Verney Caron Gunmaker double-barrel rifles, and others.
According to the NCS Comptroller General, Adewale Adeniyi, the weapons were concealed using various items such as doors, furniture, plumbing fittings, and leather bags.
