A total of 3,907 assault rifles and pistols are said to be missing from the Nigeria Police armoury as of January 2020, according to the 2019 Audit Report by the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation,The report further states that as of December 2018, 178,459 firearms were unaccounted for, including 88,078 AK-47 rifles.
The Auditor General’s findings also indicate discrepancies in records obtained from the Armament at the Force Headquarters.While the 21 Police Mobile Force Squadron in Abuja did not report any missing firearms, another schedule from the same department showed that 46 arms had gone missing between 2000 and 2019.
The Senate Committee on Public Accounts had summoned the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, over alleged financial infractions and missing arms flagged in the 2019 audit report. However, Egbetokun, who had previously failed to appear, eventually apologized and nominated AIG Suleiman Abdul, the Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Public Accounts and Budget, to respond to the eight queries issued against the police.
During the session, the police were only able to provide a partial account of the missing firearms, tracing records back to 1998 Of the 3,907 rifles flagged in the auditor-general’s report, they could only provide explanations for 15 – 14 reportedly lost in the line of duty and one dating back to 1998.
The Senate committee on public accounts chaired by the Vice Chairman, Senator Peter Nwaebonyi (APC, Ebonyi North), pressed the police team for answers, questioning why the queries had remained unanswered for so long AIG Abdul and his team struggled to provide satisfactory explanations Faced with intense scrutiny, AIG Abdul requested a closed-door session, but his request was swiftly rejected by committee members, including Senator Adams Oshiomhole and Senator Joel Onawakpo-Thomas. Senator Nwaebonyi firmly stated that no part of the hearing would be held behind closed doors, while Senator Oshiomhole criticized the police, remarking, “The police are known for arresting and parading petty thieves, yet they cannot account for thousands of missing assault rifles.”
Dissatisfied with the police’s response, the committee directed AIG Abdul and his team to provide a more comprehensive explanation.
They were ordered to reappear before the committee on Monday at 12 noon.
Queries involving a N1.136 billion contract-splitting allegation were vacated, while another regarding an unexecuted N925 million contract was temporarily set aside.
The Senate Committee emphasized that the issue of the missing firearms would not be swept under the carpet and demanded full accountability from the Police.
Editor Oloyede Oworu
