At a recent meeting convened by the Centre for Values in Leadership (CVL), in collaboration with Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, in a paper titled ‘Insecurity and Governance Challenges in the New Normal’, said governments at all levels must come to terms with the fact that insecurity is a real threat to the development of the country and be willing to sincerely tackle the menace.
One of the suggestions Governor Ortom made in this regard, through a statement on his behalf by his Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, was for the federal government to grant licences to responsible citizens to “carry sophisticated weapons such as AK-47 to deter criminals from attacking innocent and helpless Nigerians.”
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He further said that the policy should be backed by a strict legal framework to prevent illegal possession of arms by the citizenry without exception.
As the governor of a state which has been grappling with insecurity arising from violent activities of criminal groups, Governor Ortom’s call cannot be without foundation.
Benue has been one of the states worst hit by violent sectarian confrontations between herders and farmers, communities and clans.
There are also the criminal activities of kidnappers, bandits among other criminals which have all taken a bloody toll on lives, livelihoods and properties in Benue State regarded as the food basket of the nation.
While we believe that Governor Ortom’s analysis of the challenges arising from these activities is spot on, we are however constrained to question the efficacy of his prescription to them
First, in a country that is already dangerously saturated with all kinds of arms in the hands of irregular groups, we do not see how more guns can be a solution.
It is widely acknowledged by security experts that the exponential rise in violent activities of groups in the country is attributable to the easy availability and access to all kinds of firearm.
This is even as the need to prevent the smuggling and proliferation of arms was one of the main reasons why borders have been closed for some time now.
This concern was raised most recently by President Buhari in his review of the security challenges facing the country with top security and law enforcement officers.
If one of the main issues faced by our security agencies is the proliferation of arms, it stands to reason that our priority in this regard as a country is to stem the flow rather than to encourage it.
Secondly, Governor Ortom’s suggestion that the licence to bear arms should be granted to what he termed ‘responsible citizens’ is curious and dodgy.
In its essence, this suggestion amounts to government legitimizing the arming of a section or class of the society against others thereby exacerbating the societal divisions in the country.
The potential danger here is that those few who are wealthy enough to purchase arms under this policy would view it as a status symbol to oppress, threaten and trample on the rights of less privileged Nigerians who are in the majority.
It should not be government’s policy to be selective in resolving an issue which affects all sectors and parts of the country. This would likely create another potentially intractable problem for government with all the attendant consequences.
Thirdly, the licencing of arms to privileged persons will most certainly compound the efforts of security and law enforcement officers in monitoring and regulating the use of such devices in addition to their regular job of security and law enforcement.
Let’s not forget that already, the complaint is that our police and security institutions are labouring over the myriad of existential security and law enforcement challenges all over the country.
Stretched thin as they are by personnel and equipment, it will be even more challenging for them to take on the additional job of enforcing compliance with the provisions of the use of firearms by licenced private arms owners as suggested by Governor Ortom.
Still, Governor Ortom’s suggestions should not be dismissed altogether. It is a call that would have been feasible if our society had reached a reasonable level of social tolerance and of compliance with the tenets of the law at all levels.
But for now, our efforts should be geared towards helping the security and law enforcement institutions handle the challenges they are faced with in securing the country to the best of their abilities and resources.
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