The Federal Government on Thursday destroyed 2,819 illicit and decommissioned small arms and light weapons recovered from criminal elements, including bandits, in a renewed effort to curb the proliferation of illegal firearms and strengthen national security.

The destruction exercise, carried out by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) at the Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment in Giri, Abuja, increased the total number of illegal weapons permanently removed from circulation to about 19,000.

Authorities also issued a stern warning to arms traffickers, declaring that every illegally possessed weapon would eventually be traced, recovered and destroyed.

Speaking during the exercise, the Director-General of the NCCSALW, retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police Johnson Kokumo, described the destruction as a critical component of the Federal Government’s campaign against insecurity.

“We are gathered here today to witness the destruction, by burning and subsequent smelting, of approximately 2,819 small arms and light weapons. These are weapons that were illicitly acquired, or have since been decommissioned and rendered unserviceable, and which now stand permanently removed from circulation in our society,” he said.

Kokumo emphasised that the exercise was not merely ceremonial but a concrete step towards preventing recovered firearms from returning to criminal networks.

“Every weapon that goes into these flames today is a weapon that can never again be used to threaten a community, disrupt a market, waylay a traveller, or arm a criminal or terrorist enterprise,” he stated.

He disclosed that since its establishment, the Centre had recovered more than 21,000 illicit, obsolete and unserviceable weapons across the country, with over 16,000 destroyed before Thursday’s exercise.

“With today’s exercise, that cumulative figure rises to about 19,000 weapons permanently taken out of circulation. This is a milestone we should all take pride in, and one that reflects years of sustained, disciplined, inter-agency work,” he added.

The NCCSALW boss identified the widespread availability of illegal small arms as a major factor fueling terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery, communal violence and farmer-herder conflicts across Nigeria.

According to him, the destruction programme complements the Federal Government’s wider security strategy, which includes military offensives, intelligence-led operations, strengthened border surveillance, community policing initiatives and socio-economic interventions in conflict-prone areas.

Kokumo also praised the Nigeria Police Force for contributing the largest number of recovered firearms to the destruction programme, revealing that the police released 11,907 automatic and locally fabricated weapons seized during operations nationwide.

He further commended the Armed Forces, the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Customs Service and other security agencies for surrendering confiscated weapons for destruction.

Sending a strong message to illegal arms dealers, he warned, “To those who traffic in illicit arms: the weapons you move will, in time, be found, and they will be destroyed, never to return to circulation.”

He added that the transparent destruction process underscored the government’s commitment to accountability and preventing recovered weapons from finding their way back into circulation.