Policemen, Soldiers Selling Arms To Criminals -NSA Ribadu Alleges

The National Security Adviser, NSA, Nuhu Ribadu, has accused policemen and soldiers of stealing and selling arms and ammunition from their formation to criminal elements.

Ribadu made this allegation in Abuja on Thursday during the destruction of arms by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms And Light Weapons.

He said security agents involved in the act are “worse human beings”, adding that efforts must be put in place to check those people.

He added, “We have to find a way of putting a stop to this if we want to recover our country and live in peace and stability”.

“The worst human being is a policeman or a soldier who will take arms from his own formations and sell them or hide them out for the bad people to come and kill his own colleagues,” he said.

Ribadu also rained curses on the security personnel who facilitate the movement of weapons to terrorists, bandits, and other non-state actors as he disclosed that a sizable number of illicit arms being used to commit crimes in the country originally belonged to the government.

Nigeria is facing a myriad of security issues across most parts of the country.

Boko Haram and other jihadist groups have waged a 15-year insurgency in North-East Nigeria that has killed more than 40,000 people.

Central and North-West Nigeria have been plagued for years by gangs of criminals known as “bandits”, who raid villages, kill and abduct residents, and burn homes after looting them.

By working alongside these gangs jihadist groups have increasingly established a presence in central Niger State, officials and analysts say, having previously seized villages and made camps in the area near where the attack took place.

In April, Boko Haram fighters killed two soldiers as well as vigilantes protecting nearby Allawa village. Troops were then withdrawn from the village, forcing residents to flee in fear of attack.

Bandits have no ideological leaning and are motivated by financial gain. However, analysts and officials have expressed concern over their increasing alliance with the jihadists.

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