National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSLW) has held a One-Day Sensitisation Workshop on Weapon Marking Codes where the marking codes were allocated to arms bearing security agencies in Nigeria.
This is to eradicate the proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons in the country.
The Workshop held on 29 March 2022, was to enlighten security agencies on the various weapons markings and importance of data capturing and arms record keeping.
Addressing participants at the workshop, the National Coordinator of the Centre, Major General Abba Muhammed Dikko (Rtd), who was represented by the Deputy National Coordinator of the Centre, Major General Emmanuel Ekwesi noted that it may be impossible to halt the spread of small arms and light weapons in Nigeria if the weapons used by the various security agencies weree not properly marked.
Counter insurgency operations
He said the NCCSLW was ready to work very closely with all security agencies so as to purge the country of all sorts of illegal arms movement and to give impetus to the ongoing counter insurgency operations in the country.
He reiterated that the Nigerian Government remained resolute in the preservation of peace and security in Nigeria and the NCCSALW was positioned to promote an arms-free society in collaboration with stakeholders towards strengthening peace and security in the nation.
Security agencies that attended the Workshop included the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), the Nigerian Army (NA), the Nigerian Navy (NN), the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
Others were the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigeria Correctional Service (NCS), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the National Parks Commission (NPC).
The NCCSALW was established as the focal institution for small arms and light weapons control in Nigeria.
As part of the Centre’s objective of mainstreaming illicit small arms and light weapons control effort in our country, the Centre regularly organises forums and symposiums for generating awareness and sensitisation of the public and the demonstration of government resolve to stamp out illicit small arms and light weapons in the polity.
This is contained in a statement issued by the National Coordinator NCCSALW, Major General Abba Dikko (Rtd).
Lateefah Ibrahim
