FG Goes Tough On Illegal Arms Importation, Shipment

The Federal Government has warned that illegal importation of firearms and ammunition into the
Country would no longer be tolerated.

The government has stated that henceforth multinational shipping lines and their agencies operating in Nigeria, found to be involved in the illegal shipment of arms and ammunition into the country would be dealt with according to the law, arguing that such action which is dangerous is against the well being of the country and its citizens.

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Col. Hameed Ali (rtd), the Comptroller of Customs, who bared the Federal Government’s at a
stakeholders’ meeting organised by the Nigerian Shippers' Council in Lagos on said government has
sufficient facts to prove that multinational shipping lines and agencies played major roles in the
repeated importation of illegal arms and ammunition into the country.

He maintained that no government would fold its arms and watch acts capable of destroying lives,
peace and security of its nation to thrive.

It would be recalled that following the seizure of 470 pieces of pump action rifles at the Tin Can Island Command of the Nigeria Customs in September, which brought to a total of 2,671 of such rifles imported from Turkey in the last eight months, President Muhammadu Buhari paid a diplomatic visit toTurkey, which coincided with the D-8 Summit in company of Ali.

“It has come to the notice of the Federal Government of Nigeria that the shipping companies and their agents connive with some criminally minded individuals to change on the high seas the manifests of their vessels coming to Nigeria, which is different from the original manifest obtained at the port of loading,” the CG said.

On the illegal importation of 470 pieces of pump action rifles, he said that the government has
documentary evidence to show that the original manifest showed that the container was laden with
hunters’ pump action rifles, which was changed when the vessel got to Morocco to sanitary wares.

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“I say this with a deep sense of responsibility that shipping lines are behind the shipment of illicit items into Nigeria because we have discovered in the case of the two last arms shipments when we went to Turkey is that they were actually manifested as pump action rifles for hunters.

“So, the exit certificate from Turkey indicated the actual content because the authorities in Turkey did
not know that the pump action rifles are on the prohibition list in Nigeria, they, therefore, believed they did not need to contact us in Nigeria before allowing them to export the cargo.

“But, knowing full well that these rifles are on restriction list in Nigeria, the importers changed the
manifest and concealed the weapons with sanitary wares when they got to Morocco,” he said.