Nigeria to probe arm purchase by military

Nigeria is to probe the procurement of hardware and munitions by the military since 2007, a move obviously targeted to stamp out corruption and irregularities in the country's public service.

The Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari on Monday directed the national security adviser to convene an investigative 13-man committee on the procurement of weapons by the military in the last eight years, the presidency said.

"It comes against the background of the myriad of challenges that the Nigerian armed forces have faced in the course of ongoing counter-insurgency operations in the northeast, including the apparent deficit in military platforms with its attendant negative effects of troops' morale," said a statement signed by presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, had spuriously been accused of non-adherence to correct equipment procurement procedures and the exclusion of relevant logistics branches from arms procurement under its past governments, which, very often resulted in the acquisition of sub-standard equipment for its military.

But the presidential directive said mandate has been given to the probe panel to identify irregularities and make recommendations for streamlining the procurement process in the Nigerian military. Endit