Juliana Francis
The last may never be heard of Army 38, unless a
fair hearing and listening ears are given to them.
It’s been three years and still counting that these 38
soldiers, comprising of senior military officers, including majors and generals
started the quest for justice.
Many of them have fought in the north east and
confronted dreaded Boko Haram members. They have watched friends killed on
battle grounds and had even wept as they buried colleagues. They have killed enemies
in the ongoing Boko Haram and maimed others.
Many among the Army 38 had been described as, “Intelligent,
tenacious and hardworking.”
Some of them because of their bravery in the face of
situations that had send shivers down the spines of other soldiers had received
national accolades.
These men said that they expected many things from
Nigerian government and the Nigerian Army, but what they didn’t expect is to be
compulsorily retired by the Army Council and their reputation questioned.
Counsel to these
soldiers, Abdul Muhammed said: “There was no factual basis whatsoever for the
punishment of the Army 38 by way of compulsory retirement. The retirement is illegal
and constitutes an abuse of office as the Army Council does not have the powers
to punish any officer.
“The powers of the Army
Council in relation to discipline of personnel are limited to only a
confirmation authority of punishment awarded by a duly constituted Court
Martial. None of the Army 38 was ever queried, charged or tried by a court
martial at any time and therefore the Army Council is in no position to sit
over any disciplinary matter pertaining to any of the 38 officers.”
Muhammed said that the
most saddening aspect of the whole saga was that allegations leveled against
the soldiers remain bogus and vague.
He explained that some
years back, two panels were set up by the Nigerian Army to probe soldiers
alleged to be involved in corrupt practices, arms procurements and politics.
He said: “Some of the
men indicted appeared before the panels, but others didn’t. Among the Army 38,
20 were at the panels as eye witnesses. It is shocking however, that the names
of the indicted soldiers were replaced with the names of Army 38. As I speak
with you now, the indicted soldiers are still serving, while the Army 38, who
are innocent have been compulsorily retired.”
The lawyer said that he
had no problem with his clients being labeled thieves, but he had plenty issue
when due processes are not followed to arrive at such name calling and evidence
provided to back the allegations.
Muhammed disclosed that
each of his clients had given 25 years of his life to Nigeria and were trained
with millions of naira. He noted that kicking them out of the military without
being able to prove anything against them was a sheer waste of taxpayers’ money
and worrisome.
He further disclosed
that one of the soldiers, Lt Col Baba-Ochankpa died two years ago, while
seeking for justice. Muhammed said Ochankpa died of a broken heart.
His words: “Ochankpa
had never known any job other than being a soldier. He joined the army when he
was just 10-year-old. When that was taken away from him in such an ignoble way,
he was distraught. He slept and never woke up. He has three children.”
Muhammed revealed that
most of his clients were outside Nigeria and others were at north east,
fighting Boko Haram insurgents when the alleged crimes were committed.
He added: “There was no
way these soldiers could have been involved in election malpractice that
happened in 2015, arms procurement and corruption. Most of them were outside
the country at that time. Others were occupied in the north east, fighting the Boko
Haram. When the army accused them, the Army 38 were never called or queried. At
least 24 of these men are from south, while seven are from Rivers State. With
these selections, the cream of officers from south and Rivers had been wiped
out of the Nigerian Army.”
He added: “Clearly,
someone in the leadership of the military is involved in victimization of
innocent senior officers of the Nigeria Army. It’s been revealed that the names
of innocent officers were substituted in place of the guilty ones in a case of
gross corruption and abuse of office. It is specifically alleged against the
leadership of the military that: it maliciously and surreptitiously substituted
the names of culpable officers with innocent ones in a gross act of corruption
and went ahead to deliberately mislead the President and Commander in Chief as
well as the entire nation. If you must dismiss or retired a soldier, let it
follow due process. The offences of the Army 38 till date are unclear.”
The national
coordinator of Network on Police Reforms in Nigeria (NOPRIN), Okechukwu
Nwanguma said: “After the illegal compulsory retirement of the Army 38, the
victims have individually written to the Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Defence
Staff and Mr President, C-in-C to request for details of any wrong doing that
may have warranted their compulsory retirement even when the Army Council has
no power whatsoever to retire any
officer on disciplinary grounds, but none of them have been furnished with any
offence.”
Nwanguma further said:
“The individual request for redress by the Army 38 to the C-in –C in was sent
since July 2016 in line with the prescribed procedure but they were ignored.
The calls for justice by these officers, who have individually earned awards
and accolades in their careers, have remained ignored by their C-in-C for three
years now. With the deliberate pattern of abuse targeted at these officers,
some of them approached the Senate and House of Representatives for an
independent investigation of their matter.
“Both chambers at
different times investigated the matter but came to the same conclusion that
the punishment of the Army 38 was arbitrary with no evidence of any offence
committed. Both chambers went further in their respective terms to admonish the
Nigerian Army over the arbitrary disengagement of officers as this action would
discourage serving officers and soldiers from giving their full commitment to
the service of the nation, and directed their immediate reinstatement. But they
were not reinstated.”
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