The Ministry of Defence in conjunction with the Office of the National Security Adviser has set up a committee to work out modalities to upgrade the Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PRESCOM) to National Commission.
Col. Tukur Gusau, the Public Relations Officer to Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, in statement said the minister made the disclosure, while briefing the National Security Meeting held on Thursday.
Gusau said setting up of the commission was in compliance with presidential directive for the establishment of National Commission on the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons in the country.
He said the minister also informed the council that in line with the decision of the government to increase the strength of the Armed Forces to address manpower problem, the three services had in the last two years enlisted and recruited qualified Nigerians.
“Similarly, during the period under review the Military Pension Verification Exercise was conducted in all the 36 states and FCT.
“The process enabled the Military Pension Board to update its data payroll and ensure financial savings for the Government,” Gusau quoted minister as saying.
He said the minister also briefed the council on the update of the Presidential visit to Royal Kingdom of Jordan from Dec. 2 to 3, 2017.
“The visit provided an avenue for implementation of agreement for the procurement of Excess Defence Articles from Jordan.
“The Agreement entails rebuilding and modernisation of some of our military platforms,” he said.
The minister stressed the need for the relevant security agencies to as a matter of urgency tackle the propagation of hate speeches, especially through the social media particularly by some notable Nigerians.
“The Armed forces is currently synergising with other security agencies through intelligence sharing and joint operations to address the various security challenges in Nigeria.”
