In October 2010, a mysterious and illegal consignment of thirteen containers was intercepted at the Lagos wharf in Apapa. According to media reports, the shipment contained grenades, rocket launchers, assorted explosives and other forms of weapons of mass destruction. It had already reached the country when its suspicious labelling aroused the attention of security officials and gave the importers away. Earlier this year, three Ghanaians and two Nigerians were arrested in the suburbs of Accra with a truckload of arms allegedly en-route to Nigeria. Similarly, in March 2011, the Nigerian secret police seized a truck loaded with bomb making material in Jos en-route to Kaduna. The truck contained fuses, detonators, and large amounts of ammonium nitrate fertilizers which are used in making Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). In June, a customs comptroller was implicated alongside two police officers in connection with the constant disappearance of ammunitions from the police armoury in Niger State and the resale of same to robbers and arsonists in Jos. Finally, In July, security agents intercepted a large consignment of arms, which included rocket launchers and grenades, at the Nigeria-Chad border in Borno State.
These disturbing incidents raise several questions: Could any of these seizures be connected to the mayhem that is being unleashed in Abuja, Kaduna, Jos, Damaturu, Maidugiri, Potiskum, Sokoto and other parts of Nigeria? Are these arms being funnelled to terrorist or militant groups in Nigeria? Could it be that there is a predetermined agenda that is gradually playing out? And finally, who is behind these shipments? Who is after Nigeria? Who is after my dear country?
In order to understand this issue further, it is important to understand the cost of these arms. A quick internet search took me to several sites that gave me a rough idea of the global price of these arms. The prices of guns, for instance, are as high as follows: AK47 (Russia made) costs about 400 US dollars, that is, about 60,000 naira; AK 47 (Romania made) 275 US dollars (41,250 naira); Beretta 92F costs 600 US dollars (90,000 naira), while an automatic .45 gun costs 2000 US dollars (300,000 naira). These are some of the guns allegedly reported to have been seized in transit or retrieved from some of the hoodlums who have been unleashing terror on the Nigerian public.
There are several aspects to these disturbing incidents, but I will try to consider just three of them. The first is that from the estimated cost of the items, they do not come cheap and so no poor man can afford them, especially not truck loads and full consignments of them. This begs the question: who is buying these expensive items and for what purpose? The second aspect is that most of these guns are not made within the country, and from the frequency of the usage of these guns, it is certain that we have a significant number of them already in the country. This begs the question: how did these arms get through our borders, airports and seaports? Given that these items are not as small as mobile phones, how have the users of these arms managed to transport them freely and how are they able to slip through the numerous check points and the security officers that litter Nigeria’s roads -- especially in places like Jos, Kaduna etc?
The third and final aspect of this issue concerns the core legislation against the proliferation of arms, which is the Nigerian Firearms Act of 1959. Firstly, is it not preposterous that we have such a colonial law in our law books, and especially for such key issue of concerns? Section 7 (2) of the law allows anyone above 17 to obtain a licence to possess ammunitions. Our National Assembly must be told such should now be reviewed in line with global good practice. Nigeria has literally become a dumping ground and receiving port for all sorts of things -- from the very rejected to the very weird and sometimes nauseating. The inflow of arms at an alarming rate just shows we are living up to our new label -- 'the jungle of the absurd'. I raise these issues because the security challenge in Nigeria is ballooning out of hand. Some people continue to treat this issue with a dismissive us and them attitude or with the NIMBY (not in my backyard) syndrome. I am sure the multi-directional attacks of the last few weeks are a wakeup call for everyone. The unlawful circulation and stockpiling of arms in our communities and country will do NO ONE GOOD. It is simple unacceptable. Many people who associate it with the 2015 election should be told that it is still three years away. Even at that, are we /they preparing for war? Those who are allegedly aiding and abetting all of these should have a rethink. We all have a role to play. We must arise and do our bit urgently before Nigeria goes up in flames. The time to act is now.
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