Following the massive killings that have being ongoing in the country and movement and inflow of illicit weapons, President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the establishment of a National Commission for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons in the country with a view to checkmate the trend.
Defence Minister, Mansur Muhammad Dan Ali made the disclosure after the meeting of the National Security Council on Thursday in Abuja.
The minister said the ministry of Defence in conjunction with the office of the National Security Adviser has set up a committee to work out modalities to transform the erstwhile Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PRESCOM) into a National Commission.
A statement from the minister’s office signed by Col. Tukur Gusau said, “ In compliance with the presidential directive for the establishment of National Commission on the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons in the country, the Ministry of Defence in conjunction with the office of the National Security Adviser has set up a committee to work out modalities to transform the Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PRESCOM) to a National Commission.
The minister of Defence Mansur Muhammad Dan-Ali has thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for his continuous funding of the Armed forces of Nigeria to perform its constitutional role especially now that Nigeria is fighting multiple security challenges.
The minister informed the National Security Council that in line with the decision of the present government to increase the strength of the Armed Forces to address manpower problem, the three services have in the last 2 years enlisted and recruited qualified Nigerians.
The ministry is also building befitting accommodation for members of the Armed Forces in the 6 geopolitical Zones.
Similar accommodations were built by Defence Headquarters and commissioned by the HMOD in Abuja last month. This has gone a long way in solving accommodation problem and boosting the morale of personnel serving in Abuja.
Similarly, during the period under review the Military Pension Verification Exercise was conducted in all the 36 states and FCT. The process enabled the Military Pension Board to update its data payroll and ensure financial savings for the Government.
The minister also briefed the council on the update of the Presidential visit to Royal Kingdom of Jordan from 2-3 December 2017.
The visit provided an avenue for implementation of agreement for the procurement of Excess Defence Articles from Jordan.
The Agreement entails rebuilding and modernization of some of our military platforms.
Finally, the minister express the need by the relevant security agencies to as a matter of urgency tackle the propagation of hate speeches especially through the social media particularly by some notable Nigerians.
The Armed forces is currently synergizing with other security agencies through intelligence sharing and joint operations to address the various security challenges in Nigeria.”
Colonel Tukur Gusau
Public Relations officer to the Minister of Defence
25 January 2018
