The IGP, unaccounted for firearms and threats to national security, By Iliya Musa

…any information pertaining to the wider availability of arms and ammunition, is one that would escalate public anxiety. Therefore, such information needs to be comprehensively verified – specifically when it is yet to be proven as true. It becomes more crucial in a milieu in which despite the possible best efforts of law enforcement, the present gross inadequacy of security sector actors like the Police, which operate a highly deficient ratio of one officer to the protection of about 600 people, gives many a great cause for concern.

At this point in our national life, in which questions of security have assumed a most critical urgency or dimension, the seeming paranoia attendant upon anything suggestive of constituting another level of threat to the well-being of citizens is quite understandable. This is certainly the context in which the issue of the alleged missing firearms from the armoury of the Nigerian Police is unfolding.

 But more importantly, beyond the heightened sense of anxiety and wariness, there is the need for caution and verification of all pieces of information that could lead to the enthronement of fear, when a complete picture has not emerged. And, particularly within the purview of what the country is currently going through on the level of security concerns and challenges, which have become pervasive in themselves.

This involves a spectrum extending from armed robberies to kidnapping, the activities of insurgents and other miscreants, alongside numerous manifestations of violent crime that continue to give many folks increasing cause to worry.

And, from the diverse information being disseminated across numerous crime trackers, violent crimes seem to be on the rise in the country, especially as a result of the state of the national economy, which has seen many people sink into need and multidimensional poverty. Hence, finding and taking up arms as a way of survival appears to be an option that a number of people are readily succumbing to.

This equally means that any information pertaining to the wider availability of arms and ammunition, is one that would escalate public anxiety. Therefore, such information needs to be comprehensively verified – specifically when it is yet to be proven as true. It becomes more crucial in a milieu in which despite the possible best efforts of law enforcement, the present gross inadequacy of security sector actors like the Police, which operate a highly deficient ratio of one officer to the protection of about 600 people, gives many a great cause for concern.

Missing or Unaccounted for?

At issue, currently, is the 2019 report of the Auditor General of the Federation (AuGF) that was recently considered by the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, in which it was alleged that 178,459 firearms were missing from different Police formations across the country, with 88,078 AK-47 rifles, out of the total, remaining unaccounted for in December 2018. More so, it was claimed that 3,907 rifles were missing in January 2020. Naturally, a report like this will incite fear in a public that has become very wary of and sensitive to issues of safety.

The information around these ‘missing’ firearms is not only making the media rounds at the moment, but has also motivated numerous editorial commentaries by some of Nigeria’s major newspapers, in a manner that has put the Police authorities on the spot, on the need to clarify the status of the said cache of arms and ammunition, which seems widely feared could have falling into the hands of criminals, who would utilise it in ways capable of deepening public anxiety.  

In some of these informed opinions, it is claimed that Nigeria already accounts for about 70 per cent of the illegal Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALWs) that are circulating in West Africa and held by criminal cartels and other non-state actors. Coupled with the allegation that many of the firearms recovered from bandits in Zamfara State once belonged to the country’s security forces. And, that the access to SALWs was what has sunk a country like Somalia into war almost irretrievably, while enabling the complete breakdown of law and order there.

However, there has been a strong pushback by the Police authorities, which claimed that the information in the Auditor-General’s report, not only pre-dated the coming of the present Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to office, but in a letter he wrote on the matter to the Senate, IGP Kayode Egbetokun declared that the report on ‘missing’ firearms is “rooted in factual inaccuracies,” which have caused reputational damage for the Police Force.

As he further put it, “This unfortunate incident has had far-reaching consequences, perpetuating a very false narrative about our institution and the force’s leadership, both domestically and internationally.” And, “The reputational damage inflicted upon our country and its public institution is unimaginable.”  

In the clarification that the police authorities offered on the issue, the 3,907 firearms mentioned were essentially unaccounted for and not missing, as it is being publicly insinuated.

The press statement of the Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, elucidated that “when auditors conduct visits to our armouries, they may not find all arms present at the time due to the issuance of weapons to personnel for operational purposes, many spanning to months depending on the nature of such operations. Consequently, this may lead to misconceptions regarding the accuracy of audit reports.”

Adejobi equally pointed out that, “It is important to acknowledge the challenges faced by the police during periods of civil unrest, during which several Police Officers were killed and their arms carted away, and some attacks and looting of police facilities and armouries, resulting in the loss of arms.” Yet, “every effort has been made to account for the arms that were taken, while many have been recovered back to the arms holding of the force at the moment.”

Enabling Transparency Towards Proper Verification

In the letter of Egbetokun to the Senate, he implored the leadership of the upper legislative chamber to grant the Police more time to carry out an investigation into the alleged missing arms from its armouries from December 2020, while equally admonishing the Senate to set up its own independent processes of carrying out a similar investigation to ascertain the truth. More so, he stated the need for greater transparency on the issue in the public interest:

“We appreciate the Senate Committee’s probe into the alleged missing firearms and urge the Committee to conduct future hearings on sensitive security issues in camera so that the wrong impression will not be created in the minds of Nigerians and in the minds of the international community. This is crucial to prevent misinformation and ensure national security.”

As reported by PREMIUM TIMES newspaper, after reading the letter to the chamber, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, had said, there was “No further discussion. There was clear misinformation on the issue of missing firearms. The IGP’s letter is very clear.”  

Iliya Musa writes from Jos, Plateau State.