By Sumaila Ogbaje

The Nigerian Army has dismissed allegation of ethnic bias in the trial of soldiers recently arraigned before a Court Martial in 82 Division, Enugu.

This is contained in a statement in Abuja on Saturday, by Maj.-Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu, Director, Army Public Relations.

Nwachukwu said that the Nigerian army was a composite national institution and not an ethnic militia.

He was reacting to a media report that there was a deliberate effort to convict soldiers of Southern extraction, while those from Northern Nigeria were allowed to go free.

He said the report alleged that some allegedly aggrieved soldiers who were arraigned before the court martial expressed the concern.

He noted that the misleading report was being circulated to cause disharmony within the army and by extension the Armed Forces of Nigeria.

According to him, the report is entirely bereft of any strand of truth and ultimately aimed at disparaging the current leadership of the army in particular and the armed forces in general, using the instrumentality of ethnic and religious bigotry.

Nwachukwu explained that the composition of the said court martial was not based on regional representation but was diverse, with personnel drawn from various regions of the country.

He revealed that the President of the Court was of Northern extraction, while the Judge Advocate was from the South.

He added that 60 per cent of the court martial members were of Southern extraction.

According to him, this demonstrates a fair and balanced representation, even though religion and ethnicity are not  major focal criteria in the decision making process of the army.

“The decision of a court martial is collective and based on evidence presented during the trial.

“The said court martial tried the personnel, irrespective of their ethnic and religious affiliations and the outcome was determined strictly based on the evidence presented.

“In espousing the position of the Nigerian Army in the cases mentioned in the report, taking that of Pte. Usman Shonva for instance, wherein  evidence revealed that there were other soldiers at the scene of the incident, who also fired their weapons.

“Hence, the court, based on this finding among others, reached the conclusion that the shot that killed the dead soldier could have been fired by any of the soldiers at the scene, thus, leading to his discharge and acquittal.

“It must be emphasised that the Nigerian Army does not task its personnel (including for court martial membership) on a regional basis in order to achieve national spread”.

“The Nigerian Army is a composite national institution and not an ethnic militia. It will therefore not bite the odious bait being dangled to induce splintering along sectional, ethnic and religious fissures.

The Army spokesman said the court martial proceedings were conducted in a fair and unbiased manner.

He urged the publisher of the report to  refrain from peddling misinformation capable of engendering disaffection and disharmony among army personnel, other services and security personnel.

“We urge the public to note the true picture and discountenance the false report published by the online media platform.

“Continued spread of the misinformation will  only serve the ulterior motive of the author, which is to cause disharmony in the Nigerian army.

“The army is committed to upholding justice, equity and discipline within its ranks, and will continue to ensure that all personnel are treated fairly and in accordance with the law,” he added. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Deborah Coker/Isaac Aregbesola