President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday swallowed his pride when he admitted on that despite a prolonged closure of the nation’s land borders, illegal arms kept flowing into the country.
The President however attributed the problem to the situation in Libya, saying that once the country remains unstable, illegal arms and ammunition will continue to flow in the Sahel region of Africa.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, qouted the President as saying this at the Presidential Villa, Abuja while receiving in farewell audience the outgoing Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel, Mohammed Ibn Chambas.
The statement qouted President Buhari as saying: “We closed our land borders here for more than a year, but arms and ammunition continued to flow illegally.
“As far as Libya remains unstable, so will the problem remain. We have to cope with the problems of development, as we can’t play hop, step and jump. But we will eventually overcome those problems.”
Speaking further, President Buhari said Muammar Gadaffi held a grip on power in Libya for 42 years by recruiting armed guards from different countries, who then escaped with their arms when the Libyan strongman was killed.
“They didn’t learn any other skill than to shoot and kill. So, they are a problem all over the Sahel countries today,” he said.
