Senate grills Egbetokun over 3,907 missing police assault rifles

Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector-General of Police faced tough scrutiny in the Senate on Tuesday over the disappearance of 3,907 assault rifles, as highlighted in the 2019 Audit Report by the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation (AuGF).

During the sitting of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts on Tuesday, Egbetokun apologised for failing to honor previous invitations to address financial irregularities flagged in the audit report.

Following his apology, he delegated Suleiman Abdul, the assistant inspector-general (AIG) of police in charge of public accounts and budget, to respond to eight audit queries raised against the force.

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While the committee, chaired by Peter Nwaebonyi, the  deputy chairman  (APC, Ebonyi North), dismissed one query related to contract splitting worth N1.136 billion and temporarily set aside another concerning a N925 million contract, it upheld the third query regarding the missing firearms, many of which were AK-47 rifles.

The Auditor General’s representative detailed the findings, stating:

“As of December 2018, a total of 178,459 firearms were unaccounted for, including 88,078 AK-47 rifles. However, a thorough audit conducted as of January 2020 revealed that 3,907 assault rifles and pistols across various police formations remained missing.”

A breakdown of the missing weapons showed that 601 were from 15 training institutions, 42 from 23 police formations, 1,514 from 37 state commands, 29 from zonal commands, and 1,721 from the Police Mobile Force (PMF) units.

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The senators pressed the police delegation for explanations on why the queries had not been addressed earlier.

However, neither AIG Abdul nor his team could provide a satisfactory response regarding the whereabouts of the missing rifles.

Under mounting pressure, AIG Abdul requested a closed-door session, but this was swiftly rejected by the committee.

“This is a public accounts committee with no room for secrecy. In the United States, such proceedings are televised live. Any response regarding the missing rifles must be given openly, especially with journalists present,” Nwaebonyi said, rejecting the call for a closed session.

Adams Oshiomhole also opposed the request holding that the force should be held to its own standards.

“The police are known for parading petty criminals who steal rats and rabbits. They should apply the same standard to the missing assault rifles by revealing who was responsible and what actions have been taken to recover them,” the senator said.

When pressed further, AIG Abdul could only account for 15 out of the 3,907 missing rifles. He explained that 14 were lost due to officers killed in action, while one had been missing since 1998—a response that further frustrated the committee.

Determined to get answers, the committee directed the police team to return with a more comprehensive explanation.

The matter will not be swept under the rug, the senators warned, setting a deadline for the police to reappear before the committee next Monday at noon.

Meanwhile, deliberations on the remaining five audit queries were put on hold.