Retired DIG Johnson Kokumo, the Director- General (D-G) of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), has said that proliferation of small arms and light weapons are fueling banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery and other forms of crimes in Nigeria.
Kokumo said this on Wednesday when he paid a working visit to the North West Zonal Office of the NCCSALW in Kaduna State.
The director-general said that curbing small arms and light weapons circulation is key to reducing violent crimes in Nigeria.
Kokumo added that no community or society in the country that is free of crimes and criminal activities .
He therefore said the federal government in its wisdom, searched into the root cause, adding that controlling the proliferation of small arms and light weapons would reduce the rate of crime and criminal activities to the barest minimum.
The directorigeneral said the centre recovered weapons from almost all the arms bearing agencies in Nigeria, stressing that it is the statutory obligation of the NCCSALW.
”It is not the responsibility for any arms bearing agency of government to recover weapons and keep them to themselves as clearly stated in the NCCSALW’s act.
“Arms bearing agencies are supposed to hand over recovered weapons to the NCCSALW for documentation, and profiling with a view of even investigating the sources of the weapons before they are eventually destroyed.
“I assumed leadership of the centre in March, and we have destroyed over 2,400 assorted weapons. These weapons were retrieved from arms bearing agencies,”he said.
The NCCSLW boss therefore urged stakeholders, especially representatives of all arms bearing agencies to convey the message that weapons they recovered from criminal elements are not meant for their keep.
He called on the public to be wary of imposters illegal activities who parade themselves as those responsible for mop up of small arms and light weapons in the country under a body, adding that their leader was apprehended and currently on prison remand.
He thanked the government of Kaduna state for all its support to the centre especially the provision of land for the centre to build its zonal head office.
He also thanked other stakeholders including religious/traditional leaders, the media, among others for their various support to the centre.
Earlier, the North West Zonal Coordination of the NCCSALW, retired AVM Haruna Muhammad, thanked the director-general for his support to the zone.
He said the support had helped the zone to record success in recovering small arms and light weapons within its areas of responsibility.
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