Ijaw youths commend DSS on arms seizure, UK Army Major’s arrest

•••urges UK govt to probe Army officers in gun-running 

The Ijaw Youths Network has commended the Department of State Services for the seizure of 57 AK-47s, other rifles, and hundreds of ammunition in Delta State.

The IYN also said that the arrest of a Delta State-born UK army major and others in connection with the gunrunning reinforces public trust and confidence in the nation’s secret service and its commitment to national security.

 The IYN Coordinator, Frank Ebikabo, and Secretary, Federal Ebiaridor, were in a statement on Tuesday reacting to the media reports about the arrest of a gunrunner with 57 AK-47 assault rifles by the DSS near Asaba, Delta State, last week.

They commended the Director General of the DSS, Mr Adeola Ajayi, and his men for combining proactiveness with an outstanding display of professionalism to prevent mindless bloodletting in Warri.

“We hereby commend the Director General of the DSS, Adeola Ajayi and the operatives of the service, whose alertness and painstaking investigation led to the arrest of the UK Army Major and the seizure of the arms and ammunition involved.

“What the DSS has forestalled is a vile attempt to foist a dangerous regime of inter-ethnic violence on Warri and its environs.

“We hold the view that the agency deserves commendation as the magnitude of violence and destruction 57 AK-47s in the wrong hands can cause is better imagined,” they said.

The IYN leadership urged the leadership of the DSS to ensure a holistic investigation of those behind the botched attempt to return Warri to the days of violence because of disenchantment over the INEC ward delineation exercise in the Warri Federal Constituency.

They urged the DSS to be consistent with the good work they have done by bringing to justice all those involved in the crime, including the UK Army Major.

The IYN said that disagreements over issues should be resolved through dialogue rather than resorting to ethnic-inspired violence.

The IYN also called on the British High Commission in Nigeria to treat a petition sent to it on the involvement of a UK military officer with the required sense of urgency.

Ebikabo and Ebiaridor said it is disheartening that a high-ranking military officer could be linked to a failed attempt to stoke an avoidable crisis in Nigeria.

They urged the UK government to clarify the status of the said Major, whose actions have become glaringly inimical to the good image of the UK military.

The group also urged the inhabitants of the Warri Federal Constituency—Ijaws, Urhobo and Itsekiri—to be wary of people with dangerous and sinister intents to start ethnic violence in the city.

Meanwhile, a coalition of civil society organisations in Nigeria has called on the British government to partner with the federal government to investigate the activities of the major arrested over alleged illegal arms procurement intended to exacerbate tensions in Delta State.

This was contained in a letter addressed to the British High Commissioner in Nigeria dated April 28, 2025.

The CSOs alleged that the major’s action was a threat to Nigeria’s internal security.

The letter was jointly signed by Dr. Nwambu Gabriel, leader of the coalition; Zekeri Momoh-Saliu, secretary; Mohammed Idris, member; and Hugo Okafor, member.

Some of the members of the coalition are the Centre for Credible Leadership and Citizens Awareness, Coalition for Democratic Watchdogs, Initiative for Voter Awareness and Electoral Reforms, and the Global Centre for Conscience Living Against Corruption.

There has been disenchantment and tension following the delineation of wards and polling units in the Warri Federal Constituency by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

 This had thrown up suspicions that the arms were procured by those opposed to the exercise.

Security sources say that the DSS is also looking into the activities of a powerful traditional ruler in connection with the matter.

INEC had earlier presented the report on the delineation of wards and polling units in the Warri Federal Constituency to represent the Ijaw, Itsekiri, and Urhobo ethnic nationalities.

The Delta State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Etekamba Umoren, who represented the commission’s chairman at the presentation in Asaba, said that the fresh ward and polling unit delineation fieldwork was necessitated by the Supreme Court judgment of December 22, 2022, which ordered it to conduct the exercise.

INEC gave copies of the delineation report to Chief Victor Okumagba, Dr. Andrew Igban, and Dr. Joe Bisina on behalf of the Urhobo, Itsekiri, and Ijaw ethnic nationalities, respectively.

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