The Chief of Defence Staff of Defence Staff, Gen Lucky Irabor, has said that no state government is empowered to acquire high caliber weapons in the class of AK 47 assault rifles.
The CDS was reacting to intensified efforts by the Governor of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu and his Benue State counterpart, Samuel Ortom to get AK 47 assault rifles to state and regional security outfits.
Both Governors have attacked the Federal Government for refusing to grant their requests for approval for the procurement of AK 47 for state-based security outfit under them.
Akeredolu criticized the Federal Government for allegedly approving such weapons for Katsina State owned security outfit and depriving others of their request for the same approval.
But the Presidency has since dismissed the Governor’s claim saying no such approval was granted to Katsina or any other state.
Similarly, Ortom said on Thursday that his administration is making arrangements to procure AK-47 rifles for the State Volunteer Community Guards if his people approve of it.
He accused the Federal Government of complicity in the herders attacks on in his state stressing that he intended to wait for a month before seeking the position of the Benue people on the issue of acquiring the weapons.
He said he had already applied to the Federal Government for approval to procure automatic weapons, particularly AK-47 assault rifles, but had yet to get a response.
“If there is no reply in the next one month, I will revert to my people to advise on what to do because the Federal Government is complicit on the issue of herders’ attacks on the state,” he said.
Ortom spoke on Thursday at the passing out ceremony for the second batch of the State Volunteer Community Guards in Makurdi,
But the The CDS urged Nigerians to be careful about Governor requesting to procure automatic weapons for security bodies in their states.
He spoke alongside the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola and his Police Affairs counterpart, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi when they briefed state house correspondents after the National Security Council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Irabor said that the AK47 was strictly for operatives of Federal Government owned and control security outfits.
He said “Firearms fall into two major categories. You have the automatic weapons and the ones that we may classify as non-automatic weapons which some of you may even have if you have the appropriate licences. Talking about the Pump Action which is the very common ones, and sometimes even the dane guns some of the hunters use.
“What is involved in the class that is mentioned has to do with automatic weapons. There’s no state that has been given licence for that.
“So, you do not ask for what you do not have power to acquire,” General Irabor stated.
