In a tweet on Friday, Sani said, “The revelations reportedly made by the NSA Ribadu that most of the arms used by bandits and terrorists in Nigeria are same, and sourced from some collaborating security agents is a strong evidence that our security challenges are reinforced and sustained by rogue elements within our security and defence services.”
Social activist and former member of the Nigerian Senate, Shehu Sani, has voiced his concerns following the revelations by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, that some Nigerian security agents are behind the supply of arms to bandits and terrorists.
In a tweet on Friday, Sani said, “The revelations reportedly made by the NSA Ribadu that most of the arms used by bandits and terrorists in Nigeria are same, and sourced from some collaborating security agents is a strong evidence that our security challenges are reinforced and sustained by rogue elements within our security and defence services.”
Sani’s comments came after Ribadu, during the destruction of arms by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), condemned some military and police personnel who allegedly sold arms from their formations to criminal elements.
“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,” Ribadu had stated during the event held in Abuja.
He had emphasised that those within the security services involved in such acts pose a grave threat, saying, “The worst human being is a policeman or a soldier who will take arms from his own formations and sell them or hide them out for the bad people to come and kill his own colleagues.”
Sani further stressed that the issue requires immediate attention. He suggested a thorough cleansing of the security apparatus, stating, “Fumigation and deworming of the police and the Army is needed.”
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Ribadu had also highlighted that many of the illicit arms being used to commit crimes in Nigeria originally belonged to the government, having been diverted by corrupt elements within the security agencies.
He stated that the destruction of these arms was part of ongoing efforts to curb the proliferation of illegal weapons in the country.
“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,” Ribadu explained. He stressed the importance of dealing with rogue elements in the security services and foreign “merchants of death.”
Sani’s call for reforms within Nigeria’s security forces aligns with Ribadu’s broader message of addressing the root causes of insecurity in the country, particularly the corruption and criminal activity within the agencies responsible for safeguarding the nation.
The destruction of arms, which included unserviceable, obsolete, and recovered weapons, was part of the government's strategy to address the challenge of arms proliferation.
“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,” Ribadu said.
The Director General of NCCSALW, retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, also emphasized the importance of this exercise, noting that it was the third in a series and the first since his assumption of command.