Kokumo Blames Security Agencies for Rising Gun Proliferation
The Director-General of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), DIG Johnson Kokumo (retd.), has blamed poor armoury management within Nigeria’s security agencies for the increasing spread of illegal firearms across the country.
Speaking at the 46th Annual Conference of the Nigerian Society of International Law held at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Lagos, Kokumo said weak control and corruption in the security sector were allowing weapons to leak from official stockpiles into criminal hands, worsening insecurity and political violence.
> “No single geopolitical zone in Nigeria is free from the scourge of arms proliferation,” he said. “Leakages from poorly managed armouries continue to arm criminals and undermine national security.”
Delivering a paper titled “International Law and Managing the Challenges of Small Arms and Weapons: The Nigerian Mass Effect,” Kokumo described the 1959 Firearms Act as outdated and inadequate for today’s challenges.
He also noted that Nigeria’s 4,000-kilometre porous borders have become key routes for smuggling weapons, drugs, and contraband, linking arms trafficking to terrorism and organised crime.
Kokumo said tackling arms proliferation requires stronger enforcement, prevention, and partnerships, stressing that enforcement must include recovery of illicit weapons, prosecution of offenders, and destruction of seized arms.
He further called for reforms to integrate local gunsmiths into a regulated framework rather than prosecuting them.
> “Some of our local fabricators are naturally skilled. If properly trained and registered, their talents can help strengthen our defence industry,” he said.
According to him, a national register of local gunmakers is already being compiled to ensure proper oversight.
Kokumo praised President Bola Tinubu for signing the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons Act into law on June 4, 2024, which officially empowers the Centre to act.
He, however, questioned the accuracy of the 2016 Small Arms Survey, which claimed that over six million illicit weapons circulate in Nigeria, saying the country needs an updated, Nigerian-led study.
In his remarks, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by the Solicitor-General, Mr. Hameed Oyenuga, said national sovereignty depends on justice, strong institutions, and unity.
> “A nation’s sovereignty is only as strong as its institutions, its economy, and the unity of its people,” Sanwo-Olu said. “When corruption weakens governance or insecurity divides communities, sovereignty becomes fragile.”
The conference was attended by several legal and academic experts, including Prof. Yinka Omorogbe (SAN), Prof. Ademola Popoola, Prof. Bola Akinterinwa, and Dr. Asika Karibi-Whyte.
