MISSING FIREARMS IN POLICE ARMOURY: NEED FOR ACCOUNTABILITY

The failure of the police command, to answer the audit query issued by the Nigerian Senate on missing firearms and its shady expenditure, against the backdrop of unabated security problems in the country, and the huge investment by the government to contain the menace, has left tongues wagging. Nigerians are beginning to question the commitment of the Nigerian Police to honor their oath to secure lives and property of Nigerians. Yet to talk of maintaining law and order in the civil sense!

With insecurity as one single challenge that touches on everyday life of Nigerians, the presence of multi-dimensional criminal elements and non-state actors who illegally bear firearms has become a serious concern to right-thinking members of the Nigerian society. Reports of invasion of communities by criminal gangs, who in some cases wipe out an entire community with AK-49, have become a commonplace. Nigerians are keen to know, the source of the firearms and who the possible sponsors are.

Investigation indicates that these weapons may have been procured from outside the country by the rich sponsors of the bloody campaigns. Some other source suspects that there could be an unholy alliance between the terrorists, the bandits, robbers and compromised security personnel, who now supply the guns for monetary exchange. There is also a school of thought that believes that some of the guns were taken away after some ambush operations of the terrorists against the Nigerian soldiers. They also say that some guns may have been stolen from police personnel after coordinated heavy attacks on officers as have been recorded in some parts of the country at different times.

Whichever is the case, what is being established is that Nigeria is losing an incredibly high number of firearms to criminals, which has now become a subject of inquest at the National Assembly.

This comes against the backdrop of reports that some police firearms were unaccounted for. Unfortunately, Senate’s intervention on the matter has not signposted any headway. Rather, it blew up what could be called a cesspit of corruption and confusion, with the disclosure by the Auditor – General of the Federation (AuGF) that “As of December 2018, a total of 178,459 firearms were unaccounted for. These include 88,078 AK-47 rifles. However, a thorough audit conducted as of January 2020 revealed that 3,907 assault rifles and pistols across various police formations (including training institutions) remained missing.”. The number of reported missing weapons is inconceivable and really alarming.

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in its usual manner, has rebutted the report. In a statement signed by Olumuyiwa Adejobi, Force Public Relations Officer, the NPF clarified that the reports appear to stem from a 2019 audit assessment by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation (AuGF). I pick holes in the Force explanation that the audit report merely noted that 3,907 firearms were “unaccounted for” at the time, not “missing” as widely reported. If not missing, why did it take the Police authority 3 years before coming with a rebuttal? Something is suspect in this kind of denial. It speaks volumes to rational thinking.

Though the statement underscores the challenges the police face, particularly during periods of civil unrest when officers were attacked, killed, and their weapons stolen, and that efforts made to recover lost arms, have recorded some success, nonetheless, to dismiss reports of missing firearms is not acceptable. The flimsy excuse that auditors visiting armories may not always find all weapons physically present, as firearms are routinely issued to personnel for operational duties that can last for extended periods without any traceable movements, is a serious indictment on the Police Force.

The increased reports of kidnaping for ransom and the missing arms, further raise serious concerns about security and accountability within the law enforcement agencies. On a serious note, cases of unchecked missing weapons pose a serious risk to national security, potentially fueling crime and violence.With the audit reports on the missing firearms, there is the urgent need for enhanced oversight, stricter inventory management and transparency in the handling of state-owned arms. It is therefore advised that relevant authorities must take immediate steps to investigate these lapses, recover missing arms, and implement robust mechanisms to prevent future occurrences.

Its apt to recall that at his inaugural speech, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu promised to put security at the top of his administration agenda. He had promised, among other things, to provide security personnel with better training, equipment, firepower, remuneration, among other reforms. The President’s speech was a sweet-musical tune to the ears of Nigerians who had endured over one decade of gruesome killings and attacks by insurgents and other criminal elements.

Close to two years down the line however, that ray-of hope is being eclipsed by the revived multi-varied attacks across the country in recent weeks. Kidnapping for ransom, robbery, terrorists’ attacks and banditry have been on the increase, despite claims by the military and security agencies that they are on top of the situation.

The deteriorating security situation in the North, attests to this. Last month, at least 27 Nigerian soldiers were killed in a jihadist suicide attack in the North East, while troops launched a ground offensive on a stronghold of Islamic State-affiliated militants in a wasteland straddling Borno and Yobe states.

Citizens expect the present administration to keep its campaign promises to secure their lives. For now, it is obvious that the criminality is still on the rampage, though it is better than Buhari’s days.

One thinks that with the plethora of human and material resources at the disposal of the security and intelligence agencies, they should be able to device a workable strategy that takes cognizance of our local situation, and adaptable of external expertise, to tackle the scourge.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. The bitter truth is that the present administration appears not to have any viable solution to the security problems. Advising that the government should engage the perpetrators since all attempts to dialogue and make them to reason seemed to have failed, appears hugely defeatist, at best.

ADVERTISEMENT

On this I want to believe nothing much can be realized under present circumstances. Nothing may change.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) said that a total of 1,463 people were killed by non-state actors while 1,172 Nigerians were kidnapped between January and September 2024. It should be surmised in unequivocal terms that the missing firearms is concomitant to the spate of attacks on the Nigerian populace. The matter is worrisome and should not be trivialized. Let the IGP live up to the responsibility of his office. Security of lives and property is sine-qua-non to development and socio-political stability. For the country to move forward, there is need to clean the augean stable, and that must start now.

More importantly, I align with the views of some security experts, that nothing may change until the country is restructured and states are granted powers to have their own police. The President should bow to the voice of reason, restructure the country and allow state police. That in itself will mark the turning point in the security and developmental trajectory of the country.

Lanre Ogundipe
Public Affairs Analyst
Former President Nigeria and African Union of Journalists
March 11,2025.