Former Army Spokesman, General Sani Usman (retd) has said it would be disastrous if citizens are allowed to arm themselves in self-defence against bandits and kidnappers in the North West.
The former army spokesperson, who appeared on Arise TV, was reacting to a recent call by the Governor of Zamfara State for residents of the state to acquire arms and be ready to stand for themselves when the terrorists strike.
Giving his reasons, Usman pointed out that the state Commissioner of Police can only authorise Dane guns for gaming as they lack the powers to licence even AK-47, which, according to him, is the least weapon used by these criminals.
Secondly, Usman noted that it would be disastrous to arm citizens with guns at this point in the country when the political atmosphere is charged, adding that the idea may be hijacked by politicians.
The Zamfara State Government had said that it is still in dialogue with the Federal Government and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) over allowing qualified residents of the State to obtain weapons for self-defense.
Addressing newsmen at the State Radio House in Gusau, the state capital, the Commissioners of Information, Hon. Ibrahim Magaji Dosara; and the Commissioner of Security and Internal Affairs, Hon. DIG Mamman Tsafe assured that the arrangement would be perfect.
The commissioners explained that though the Federal Government had since placed an embargo on issuing licences for individual possession of arms, saying that the insecurity situation in the State has become uncontrollable hence the request.
According to them, the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria stipulates that only the president and the Inspector General of police have the constitutional powers to determine which kind of weapons would be issued licenses.
“I can understand the concern and frustration of the Governor of Zamfara State and several other well-meaning people about the security situation not only in Zamfara State but in the whole of the North West geographical zone as well as other parts of the country. It is not surprising actually that the government has come out with this policy directive.
“But the security policy directive left move questions for quite a number of reasons. But the most persistent one is the issue of calling on Zamfara citizens or indigenes to arm themselves against the bandits and kidnappers.
“I’m not a legal expert but with my little knowledge of the law, I think this issue is a site for disaster for quite a number of reasons,
“The governor said the Commissioner of Police will issue licences but when you look at the powers of the Commissioner to issue licences, I think it’s just Dane guns and only for games and we know that bandits and kidnappers have graduated from AK47 to most sophisticated weapons.
“You can say rockets and all the rest. So not even the Inspector General of Police has the power to issue licence for AK-47 rifle which is the primary weapon the bandits use. So automatically it won’t serve them if you ask them to arm themselves with lesser weapons.
“It’s like somebody confronting you with AK-47 and you’re using catapult against such person. Given the time we’re now that the political atmosphere is highly charged, in the next two months the political campaign for the next elections will go into full swing and with so many arms and ammunition in the hands of individuals you’ll understand that it may likely be hijacked.”
