The National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has said the destruction of more than 19,000 illicit, decommissioned and unserviceable small arms and light weapons underscores the Federal Government’s commitment to tackling insecurity and making Nigeria safer.
Ribadu made the remark on Thursday in Abuja during the destruction of 2,809 illicit and unserviceable weapons by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW).
Represented by the Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Dr Dennis Otuaro, the NSA described the proliferation of illegal arms as a major driver of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, communal violence and other forms of criminality across the country.
“From the perspective of the Office of the National Security Adviser, the relationship between illicit arms and the insecurity confronting our country is direct and undeniable,” he said.
According to Ribadu, every weapon recovered and permanently destroyed represents one less threat to public safety. He stressed that transparent destruction exercises are essential to ensure seized weapons never find their way back into circulation.
“Public, transparent and verifiable destruction, such as we are witnessing today, permanently closes that possibility. It guarantees that these recovered weapons can never again be used against any Nigerian,” he added.
The NSA said the Tinubu administration’s security strategy is anchored on intelligence-led operations, stronger collaboration among security agencies, disruption of criminal financing networks, enhanced border security and partnerships with international allies.
He noted that controlling and destroying illicit small arms and light weapons remains a critical pillar of the strategy, complementing military and law enforcement operations by reducing the stock of weapons available to criminal groups.
Ribadu commended the NCCSALW, the Armed Forces of Nigeria, the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies for their efforts in recovering the weapons destroyed during the exercise.
He also urged Nigerians, traditional institutions, religious leaders and local communities to support security agencies by providing credible intelligence on the illegal possession, manufacture, trafficking and movement of firearms.
Addressing those involved in the illicit arms trade, Ribadu issued a stern warning.
“To those who remain engaged in the illegal manufacture, trafficking or use of weapons, let today’s exercise serve as a clear message: every illicit weapon recovered will ultimately end where these weapons are ending today—in the fire, never to return to our streets,” he said.
Also speaking, the Director-General of the NCCSALW, DIG Babatunde Kokumo (retd.), said the centre was established to coordinate Nigeria’s response to the proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons.
He explained that the agency derives its mandate from the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons Act 2024, as well as Nigeria’s commitments under regional and international agreements, including the ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons and the United Nations Programme of Action.
Kokumo disclosed that the centre has recovered more than 21,000 illicitly acquired, obsolete, decommissioned and unserviceable weapons since its establishment. Before Thursday’s exercise, over 16,000 had already been destroyed.
“With today’s exercise, that cumulative figure rises to about 19,000 weapons permanently taken out of circulation,” he said.
He noted that the destruction exercise forms part of the Federal Government’s broader security strategy, which combines military operations, intelligence gathering, community engagement, stronger border control and measures to curb the proliferation of illegal arms.
Kokumo praised the Nigeria Police Force for contributing the highest number of weapons destroyed under the programme, including 11,907 automatic firearms and locally fabricated weapons recovered during policing operations across the country.
He also acknowledged the contributions of the Armed Forces, the DSS, the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies, as well as development partners supporting efforts to trace, recover and safely dispose of illicit weapons.
According to him, the exercise sends a clear message to arms traffickers and criminal networks that every illegal weapon recovered by security agencies will be traced and permanently removed from circulation.
