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Senate knocks police over 3,907 missing assault rifles

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The Senate came down heavily on the Nigeria Police Force, NPF, at the National Assembly complex over 3,907 missing assault rifles, as revealed in the 2020 report by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation, AuGF.

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, apologised to the Senate Committee on Public Accounts for failing to honour previous invitations to explain queries raised against the police regarding alleged financial infractions in the 2019 audit report.

After his apology and oath-taking, Egbetokun nominated Assistant Inspector-General of Police, AIG, in charge of Public Accounts and Budget, Suleiman Abdul, to respond to the eight queries issued against the police by the Auditor-General’s office.

The committee, chaired by its Deputy Chairman, Senator Peter Nwaebonyi (APC, Ebonyi North), vacated the first query, which concerned N1.136 billion in contract splitting, and stood down the second, which related to the alleged non-execution of a N925 million contract. However, it sustained the third query regarding the alleged disappearance of 3,907 assault rifles, many of which were AK-47s.

Trouble arose for the police when a representative of the Auditor-General read the query aloud to committee members and AIG Suleiman Abdul. According to the 2019 audit report, as of January 2020, a total of 3,907 assault rifles were unaccounted for.

According to the Auditor-General’s representative, “The total number of lost firearms as of December 2018 stood at 178,459, out of which 88,078 were AK-47 rifles.

“However, as of January 2020, based on a thorough audit, 3,907 assault rifles and pistols across different police formations could not be accounted for.”

He further broke down the missing firearms as follows: 601 from 15 training institutions, 42 from 23 police formations, 1,514 from 37 police commands, 29 from Zones 1 to 12, and 1,721 from the Police Mobile Force, PMF, units 1 to 68.

Irked by the report, committee members bombarded the police team with questions about why the queries had remained unanswered for so long.

In response, neither AIG Suleiman Abdul nor any of his lieutenants could provide the committee with a convincing explanation for the missing 3,907 assault rifles.

Apparently overwhelmed by the barrage of questions, AIG Abdul requested a closed-door session, but the majority of the committee members—including Deputy Chairman Nwaebonyi, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, and Senator Joel Onawakpo-Thomas—rejected the request.

Rejecting the request outright, Senator Nwaebonyi stated: “This is a public accounts committee that has no room for closed-door sessions. In the United States of America, proceedings of Public Accounts Committees are televised live. So, whatever response the AIG wants to give on the missing assault rifles should be made in full view of everyone, particularly journalists.”

Senator Oshiomhole also rejected the request, saying: “The police are known for arresting and parading thieves of rats and rabbits, so we expect the same level of diligence regarding the missing assault rifles.

“The AIG should let Nigerians know what steps the police have taken over the years concerning the missing rifles, who was involved, and the extent of any recoveries made.”

In his feeble response, AIG Abdul could only account for 15 out of the 3,907 missing rifles—14 of which, he claimed, were lost when personnel were killed in active service, while one went missing in 1998. This response further infuriated the committee members.

For a soft landing, the committee resolved that the AIG and his team should return with a more thorough response to the query, stating that the matter would not be swept under the carpet.

The committee consequently directed them to reappear on Monday next week at 12 noon and suspended consideration of the remaining five queries.

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Newly married couple d!es in Otedola Bridge gas tanker explosion

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A newlywed couple, Dozie and Joan Okoye, d!ed in the gas explosion on the Otedola Bridge along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

It was gathered that the couple got married on February 22, 2025.

According to reports, Dozie and Joan were on the way home when their phone lines suddenly became reachable.

After searching for them at the Burns Center in Gbagada and Yaba Mortuary, their charred remains were finally found on Wednesday evening.

The only identification was their car’s registration number, which was found among the burnt vehicles.

The explosion, which occurred at 8:08 pm on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, was caused by a 30-tonne tanker carrying gas products, said to be owned by a nearby gas station.

The blast severely affected a Dental Clinic, while the generator house and security post of a nearby church building also sustained significant damage.

Responders recovered four charred bodies, including that of an auto mechanic identified as Rotimi Adeleye.

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Provide evidence or drop allegations against Akpabio, Adeyanju tells Natasha

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Human rights lawyer and activist, Deji Adeyanju, has called on Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (Kogi Central) to present concrete evidence to back her allegations of sexual harassment against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, Adeyanju stated that without verifiable proof, Nigerians should not dwell on the matter.

He urged the public to focus on more pressing issues, such as the Tax Reform Bill and its potential impact on low- and middle-income earners.

According to him, solid evidence would lend credibility to Akpoti-Uduaghan’s claims and warrant public scrutiny of Akpabio’s actions.

However, without such proof, the allegations remain unsubstantiated.

Adeyanju also argued that the controversy had been overflogged and should be resolved in court.

He criticised the selective outrage over the issue, noting that there was little public reaction when lawmakers received luxury cars and budgetary allocations.

According to him, “The matter has been overflogged. I believe that the parties should go to court and resolve their dispute. We should focus on Nigeria’s Tax Reform Bill and explore ways to galvanize opposition against its passage, as that is more important than this internal issue.”

He also questioned why the same senators now engaged in the dispute did not oppose the anti-people policies of the current administration.

 

“The question I have asked is this: when all these anti-people policies of the Tinubu government were being implemented, why didn’t these senators—who are now fighting over allegations of sexual harassment and concerns about ’embarrassing the Senate’—speak out against them?”

“When lawmakers were sharing cars in the National Assembly, there was no fight. When they were distributing money and budgetary allocations, there was no fight. But now, suddenly, we are hearing about a fight.”

Adeyanju further stated that Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan should, as a matter of necessity, make public credible evidence to support her claims, especially since she has been denied a fair hearing in the Senate.

He said, “Senator Natasha has alleged that the Senate President tried to sexually harass her. Since the Senate has refused to give her a fair hearing, she should present credible evidence to back up her claim.”

“It’s very simple. The man has denied the allegation. So, if there are messages—perhaps invitations or suggestive remarks—she should reveal them and expose him. After all, he who alleges must prove.”

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Pandemonium struck after a 31-year-old man, identified as Ajayi Nicholas, allegedly slumped and died inside a sex worker’s room at New Kutunku community in Gwagwalada Council Area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

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Pandemonium struck after a 31-year-old man, identified as Ajayi Nicholas, allegedly slumped and died inside a sex worker’s room at New Kutunku community in Gwagwalada Council Area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

A resident of New Kutunku, Josiah Gabriel, told Ekwutosblog that the incident happened last Saturday around 5pm when the deceased allegedly checked into a hotel room in the area.

According to him, the man allegedly slumped when he was about to leave the room and the woman rushed to alert the manager of the hotel.

He said the hotel manager identified the deceased and rushed to report the incident to his relations, who are residing within the area.

Gabriel said the deceased was taken to a nearby hospital where he was confirmed dead.

Meanwhile, the corpse was taken away and deposited at the morgue for autopsy by policemen who arrived the hotel, while the lady in question was detained by the police.

 

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