Abuja: The National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) has destroyed 1,419 illicit weapons and recovered 5,449 firearms in recent operations nationwide. The Director-General of the centre, retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, made this known on Tuesday in Abuja at the Joint Security News Briefing. The briefing was organised for spokespersons of defence, security, and law-enforcement agencies to update Nigerians on ongoing security efforts.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Kokumo said the 1,419 weapons were publicly destroyed on July 30 during the Centre’s Second Quarter Arms Destruction Exercise in Abuja. This exercise brought the total number of illicit weapons destroyed by NCCSALW since 2022 to more than 19,000. The destruction aims to prevent illicit weapons from reaching non-state actors and fuelling terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and other violent crimes.
Kokumo highlighted significant recoveries through collaboration with security and law-enforcement agencies, including 5,050 illicit, unserviceable, decommissioned, and obsolete automatic weapons retrieved from the Nigeria Police Force in June. Additionally, the Nigeria Customs Service intercepted and handed over 399 JOJEF automatic guns to NCCSALW on August 17. Other weapons have also been recovered from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and National Intelligence Agency.
The Centre is collaborating with relevant justice-sector institutions to prosecute individuals involved in arms trafficking, illegal importation, and manufacture. Eleven suspects linked to the illegal importation of 844 assorted automatic firearms and 112,500 rounds of ammunition were arrested. These weapons and ammunition were concealed in a container intercepted by the Nigeria Customs Service at Onne Port and handed over to NCCSALW. The principal suspects remain in custody, while investigations continue to apprehend other fleeing suspects.
Kokumo also disclosed the arrest and prosecution of suspects linked to the illegal manufacture of firearms and ammunition in Minna, Niger State. On weapons management, the Centre conducted Physical Security and Stockpile Management training for personnel of arms-bearing security agencies from May 18 to June 19, aimed at preventing the diversion of legally held weapons into criminal circulation.
NCCSALW has also commenced steps towards a new national Small Arms Survey to replace the 2016 survey, which no longer reflects current realities. A baseline workshop was held on August 20 with representatives of UN agencies, Small Arms Survey, security agencies, and relevant government institutions. The new survey will provide updated data to guide national responses to the proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons.
Kokumo urged Nigerians to distinguish the Federal Government’s National Forest Guards initiative from the illegal Nigeria Forest Security Service, noting that the National Forest Guards initiative is coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser. Key members of the illegal group, including its leader, Joshua Osatimehin, have been arrested and are facing prosecution, with a court order directing the sealing of the group’s offices nationwide.
Kokumo reaffirmed NCCSALW’s commitment to working with security agencies, international partners, and other stakeholders to reduce the circulation of illicit weapons. He called for continued public cooperation and accurate information sharing to support efforts to deny criminal elements access to arms. The destruction of seized illicit weapons aligns with international conventions on arms control, to which Nigeria is a signatory.