Mallam Nuhu Ribadu
Former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the incumbent National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has boldly said that a significant number of illicit weapons currently in circulation in Nigeria originally belonged to the Federal Government.
Ribadu stated this on Thursday, during the arms destruction exercise conducted by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) at Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment in 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 security personnel who facilitate the distribution of weapons to terrorists, bandits, and other non-state actors.
He assured that the government would do everything possible to ensure the country’s security. He, however, said the country is capable of handling its security concerns. “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,” he said.
“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.
“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.”
