Senate Passes Bill To Establish Commission Against Arms Proliferation – MPH

PRESS STATEMENT

Insecurity: Senate Passes Bill To Establish Commission Against Arms Proliferation

The Senate on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, passed into law a Bill to establish the National Commission for the Coordination and Control of the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment), 2022.

The passage of the Bill was a sequel to the presentation of its report by the Committee on National Security and Intelligence before the Chamber for consideration.

The Bill is a consolidation of three Bills – two Private-Member Bills and one from the Executive Arm of Government against the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the country.

The Bills titled “The Nigerian National Commission Against the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment) Bill, 2020(SB. 283)”, “The Nigerian National Commission Against the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment) Bill, 2020 (SB. 513)” and “The National Centre for the Coordination and Control of the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment) Bill, 2021 (SB. 794)”.

The Consolidated Bills were debated and successfully scaled through Second Reading and were referred to the Committee on National Security and Intelligence for further legislative work.

Presenting the Report on the Bills, the Chairman of the Committee, Sen. Ibrahim Gobir (APC – Sokoto East) said the three Bills seek to provide for the establishment of a government body that would be saddled with combating the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons in Nigeria.

According to him, the functions of the body shall be in line with Article 24 of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Convention on the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons which came into force in 2009. The lawmaker added that

the Committee on National Security and Intelligence resolved to consolidate the three Bills into one. He explained that doing so would adequately cater for the establishment of a Commission to implement measures aimed at eradicating illicit arms.

Sen. Gobir noted that establishing a Commission Against Proliferation of Weapons stemmed from the need to immediately address the nation’s present state of insecurity.

The National Commission Against the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment) Bill, 2022, was passed into law by the Senate, after its clause-by-clause consideration by the Committee of the Whole.

Signed:
Dr. Ezrel Tabiowo, FAI, FIMC, CMC, FCP, Fsca
Special Assistant (Press)
To President of the Senate