Apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has kicked against the clamour for everyone to be allowed to acquire firearms in Self-defence against bandits and other criminal elements in the country.
Prominent Nigerians including retired security chiefs have been
clamouring for firearms for self-defence to enable Nigerians defend themselves
against insecurity.
But, in an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP in Enugu, the national
publicity secretary of the organisation, Dr. Alex Ogbonnia, said
allowing everyone to own firearms at this time in Nigeria’s history
will be a problem.
Ogbonnia noted that in a society where there is a wide gap between
expectations and fulfillment from government as well as frustrations,
poverty, unemployment, criminalities, among others, it will be a
problem to allow everyone to own firearms.
The Ohanaeze spokesman, however, suggested that there should be five
levels of security operations in Nigeria to tackle the high level of
insecurity in the country but insisted that there must be proper
screening of the levels.
While acknowledging the increasing level of criminal activities by
bandits and others as well as clamoir by prominent Nigerians for
citizens to acquire weapons to defend themselves, Ogbonnia maintained that ownership of firearms by the citizens would not be the best way to fight back.
He advised that communities should be encouraged to strengthen their
vigilantes and increase their membership, adding that they should be well equipped to be in a vantage position to defend their people.
“In a federal system of government, there must be four or five levels
of security operations. The communities should increase the membership of their vigilantes and equip them to defend and protect the people but there must be screening,” he stated.
He suggested that the Federal, State, Local governments, among others should be allowed to participate in the five levels of security operations, restating that self-defence will be a problem at this period where there is restiveness, frustrations, among others.
