- Government must do more to halt arms-smuggling
The discovery of 1,100 pump-action shotguns in a container at the Tin Can Island port in Lagos by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) once again demonstrates Nigeria’s worrying inability to truly come to grips with a very dangerous phenomenon.
It is only the latest of several interdictions. In January, 661 pump-action rifles were intercepted by the NCS in the Mile 2 area of Lagos after being cleared from Apapa port. Four months later, in May, 400 shotguns and accessories were discovered at the Tin Can Island port. In October 2010, it was discovered that some 13 containers of arms and ammunition had come into the country through ports in Lagos since July 2010.
A small arms survey conducted in 2007 put the number of small arms and light weapons in the country at between one and three million. In 2016, the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC) declared that 70 per cent of the estimated 500 million small arms circulating within the West African sub-region are to be found in Nigeria alone.
Although the NCS and the security services routinely congratulate themselves for such discoveries, there is the nagging question of whether other arms containers have been able to evade scrutiny and get into the country. The sharp increase in kidnapping and other violent crimes, as well as the growing numbers of well-armed herdsmen, cultists and militant groups would seem to indicate that Nigeria is awash with illegally-acquired small arms.
For all the noise that is made when discoveries are announced, it is surprising that very little is heard about prosecution and conviction of those involved in arms-smuggling. The last significant conviction appears to have been in May 2013, when two Nigerians and an Iranian were sentenced to five years each. Given the seriousness of the crime, as well as the fact that accomplices are often apprehended during the discovery of these weapons, there can be no excuse for the apparent inability of the authorities to prosecute those involved.
There is also the question of the inspection regime at Nigeria’s ports. In addition to the NCS, there are six authorised inspection agencies, including the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the Nigeria Police, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), and Port Health. In addition, there are said to be a staggering 15 other agencies operating at the ports, allegedly with the same anti-smuggling mandate.
The discovery of illegal arms shipments clearly shows that the high number of agencies at the ports is counterproductive. The sheer number of agencies makes it difficult to hold a particular group responsible for any act of inefficiency or incompetence. Apart from creating bureaucratic bottlenecks which unnecessarily slow down port operations, the situation also creates obvious opportunities for corruption, smuggling, false declarations and other criminal activities.
It is time for the country to treat the arms-smuggling menace with the seriousness that it deserves. The number of agencies operating in the ports must be reduced and each agency assigned specific complementary responsibilities. Broken-down scanners must be repaired; combined with methodical physical inspections, their use would make it less easy for criminals to conceal weapons within more innocuous items.
Officers of the NCS and other port-inspection agencies who are found culpable of involvement in facilitating arms-smuggling must be prosecuted, as well as any forwarding agents, consignors or importers who may be involved. It is not enough to announce that they have been detained or are facing interrogation whose outcome is never publicly announced.
The threat posed to Nigeria’s peace and stability by smuggled weapons cannot be overestimated. It is essential that their entry into the country be prevented with all the human and material resources at the nation’s command.
