According to statistics from industry operators, the demand for bullet proof cars in the country has risen from 800 to 1500 annually.
This information was divulged by Mr. Adetokunbo Ogundeyin, the CEO of Proforce Limited, a supplier of armored vehicles. Mr. Ogundeyin attributed the increase in demand to the build up to the 2015 elections which he described as a do or die affair.
He said, “We are having another election next year. Politics in this country is a bit of do-or-die. A lot of people just feel that they will be insecure. So, they want to protect themselves. That is one reason.
“The other reason is the level of threat to life in the Northern area. I am talking about the Boko Haram issue. Unfortunately, the situation is escalating; people feel threatened in the North, and it is even spreading to the South. This is the reason why people feel they have to be protected. Armed robbery is also a factor.”
Arms and ammunition influx into the country has been said to be flowing in steadily. Wale Adeniyi, Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Customs Service has stated that Customs was seizing arms at the border on a daily basis.
“We know the porosity of our borders, we had to change patrol strategies and the patrol strategy that we are using now is yielding dividends, we are making seizures of contraband on daily basis including arms and ammunition,” he said.
On Thursday 2,700 anti-aircraft and anti-tank bombs were seized at Port Harcourt in Rivers.