THE Federal Government on Thursday destroyed 2,809 illicit, decommissioned and unserviceable small arms and light weapons as part of renewed efforts to curb the proliferation of illegal arms fueling insecurity across the country.
News Point Nigeria reports that the destruction exercise, carried out by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) in Abuja, increased the cumulative number of weapons destroyed by the centre to about 19,000.
The Federal Government also reaffirmed its commitment to stemming the circulation of illegal weapons blamed for worsening terrorism, insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, communal clashes and other violent crimes across Nigeria.
Speaking at the event, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, said the exercise reflected government’s commitment to transparency, accountability and national security.
Ribadu, who was represented by the Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dr Dennis Otuaro, said terrorism, insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, communal conflicts and other forms of violence were sustained by the widespread availability of illicit arms.
According to him, every weapon recovered and permanently destroyed represents one less threat removed from Nigerian society.
“It is important to emphasise that recovering weapons alone is not enough.
“Public, transparent and verifiable destruction guarantees that these recovered weapons can never again be used against any Nigerian,” he said.
The NSA said his office, with the support of President Bola Tinubu, had continued to pursue an intelligence-led national security strategy built around stronger inter-agency cooperation, disruption of criminal financing networks, improved border security and renewed international partnerships.
He stated that the approach had produced measurable gains by weakening terrorist capabilities and strengthening Nigeria’s overall security architecture.
Ribadu urged Nigerians to assist security agencies by reporting cases involving illegal possession, manufacture, trafficking and movement of arms.
He also appealed to traditional and religious leaders to promote peace, dialogue and voluntary disarmament within their communities.
Earlier, the Director-General of NCCSALW, retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, described the destruction exercise as a deliberate, transparent and irreversible measure aimed at strengthening national security.
Kokumo explained that the weapons destroyed were either illegally acquired or had been declared obsolete, decommissioned and unserviceable.
He said the spread of illicit small arms remained one of the major factors driving terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, communal clashes and other violent crimes across Nigeria.
According to him, more than 21,000 illicit, obsolete and unserviceable weapons have been recovered since the establishment of the centre.
He disclosed that more than 16,000 weapons had already been destroyed before Thursday’s exercise, adding that the latest destruction raised the total number of arms permanently removed from circulation to about 19,000.
The NCCSALW boss commended the Nigeria Police Force, the Armed Forces of Nigeria, the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies for their support in recovering and releasing weapons for destruction.
He said the exercise sent a strong warning to illegal arms traffickers that recovered weapons would no longer be allowed to return to circulation.
Kokumo added that the permanent destruction of recovered weapons remained a critical component of Nigeria’s broader strategy to reduce the availability of arms used by criminal groups to threaten lives and property.