The National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, expressed strong criticism of police and military personnel involved in stealing and selling arms and ammunition to criminals.
Ribadu made these remarks in Abuja on Friday during an event marking the destruction of weapons by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons.
According to the National Security Adviser, security agents involved in the act are “worse human beings”, adding that efforts must be put in place to check those people.
Read Also: Gumi Exposes Government Officials Who Accompany Him During Negotiation With Bandits
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 condemned security personnel who facilitate the movement of weapons to terrorists, bandits, and other non-state actors, revealing that a significant number of illicit arms used in crimes in Nigeria originally came from government stockpiles.
Nigeria is currently grappling with numerous security challenges across various regions. Boko Haram and other jihadist groups have been engaged in a 15-year insurgency in North-East Nigeria, resulting in over 40,000 deaths.
Meanwhile, Central and North-West Nigeria have suffered for years from criminal gangs known as “bandits,” who raid villages, kill and abduct residents, and set homes ablaze after looting.
These bandits have increasingly allied themselves with jihadist groups, establishing a presence in central Niger State, where they have taken over villages and set up camps.
In April, Boko Haram fighters killed two soldiers and vigilantes protecting Allawa village, leading to a withdrawal of troops and forcing residents to flee in fear of further attacks.
While bandits are primarily motivated by financial gain and lack an ideological agenda, their growing collaboration with jihadist groups raises significant concerns among officials and analysts.