The National Security Council had on Thursday, declared NATFORCE as an illegal organisation.


The National Taskforce on the Prohibition of Illegal Importation/Smuggling of Arms, Ammunition, Light Weapons, Chemical Weapons and Pipeline Vandalism (NATFORCE) has been disbanded to be absolved into a new commission, a member of the team told SaharaReporters on Saturday.
The National Security Council had on Thursday, declared NATFORCE as an illegal organisation.
The council, therefore, ordered the body to disband itself or force the wrath of the federal government.
It also passed a vote of confidence on security agencies for their efforts to quell the violence and attacks recorded nationwide.
“Equally of concern is the presence of some illegal outfits that impersonate the legitimate security agencies. Of particular concern is a body called National Task Force on Illegal Importation of Goods, Small Arms and what have you, but the short name for it is NATFORCE,” the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, had said.
“The Council declares that body as an illegal organization; it should just simply disband itself, because the Council has ordered all security agencies to enforce the disbandment of that body and other such bodies that operate illegally without any force of law.”
The Senate had in July passed into law a Bill establishing the National Commission for the Coordination and Control of the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons, with NATFORCE being one of its components.
The legislation is a consolidation of three bills — one proposed by the executive, and the other two sponsored by senators.
In 2021, Buhari approved the establishment of a National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW).
The agency is headed by Maj Gen. A. M Dikko (retd) and it is the only national coordination mechanism for the control and monitoring of the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in Nigeria.
“We were not really disbanded but turned to a unit under the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, which was established by President Buhari in 2021,” the source told SaharaReporters.