Reps to probe police over loss of firearms by operatives

The House of Representatives on Thursday resolved to probe the persistent loss of firearms by police operatives in the country.

This followed the adoption of a motion presented by a lawmaker from Kogi State, Idris Salman, at the plenary in Abuja.

In his presentation, Salman lamented that many cases of lost firearms have gone unreported by the Force.

He added that the Auditor General’s Office in 2019 reported that 178,459 pieces of firearms were missing from the armoury.

READ ALSO: Police probe alleged harassment of principal, teachers by operatives

The lawmaker said: “Nigeria Police have lost sufficient firearms to arm four full-size infantry divisions which were not reported, thus, violating paragraph 2603 of the Financial Regulations, 2009, which requires officers to report store losses to the head of department or unit within three days if the loss occurs away from headquarters.”

In his remark, the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abass, directed the House Committee on Police Affairs and two others to investigate the persistent loss of firearms by police operatives across the country.

The other committees involved in the assignment are that of National Security and Intelligence and Public Accounts.

The committees are also expected to investigate the police’s failure to comply with the Financial Regulations Act and recommend appropriate punitive measures.

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