The Chief Of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, who was a guest on a private television Programme on Friday, stated that the military is on the path to becoming a superpower in the production of military equipment in a few years
“Sometimes we gain traction and then it goes down, but now, with the signing of the DICON Bill, we are going to make sure it is sustainable. People are interested, people are coming in, we are having a lot of partners going into it and I can assure you that in a few years, Nigeria too will be a superpower in producing its own equipment.” the CDS said.
He noted that the military used to produce some of its weapons at the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) but that slowed down over the years.
In spite of the drawback, General Musa expressed optimism at the resumption of production of military equipment saying the Nigerian military is now making the small calibre of weapons directly.
He said, “We used to assemble guns from DICON but it stopped, that is being restored now. We produce our own ammunition now. Directly we do that for small calibre 7.62mm, we do that and 9mm, we also do that.
“We want to do the 5.6 and then go to the higher calibres from 12.7 and above. So those are the things we are working on. You know, the funny thing is that the Nigerian DICON started 60 years last year, the same time as Brazil’s. Brazil is producing unmanned aircraft and unmanned submarines, they have gone very far, and we want to achieve that.”
General Musa said that the production of military equipment locally will help create employment for the youths and as well improve the country’s foreign exchange.
He added that local production of equipment will enable the Nigerian military sell to the neighbouring countries and raise funds for the military.
With the Federal High Court Abuja proscribing the Lakurawa sect on Friday, and classifying it as a terrorist organization, the Chief of Defence Staff said this has given the military ”legal backing” to actively eradicate them.
He said that some foreign purchased weapons like the Super Tucano has restrictions where it can be used, but with the proscription of the group as terrorists, such weapons can now be used against them.
