Nigerian Military Denies Reports Saying It Warned Soldiers Against Coup

Contrary to media reports, the Nigerian Army has denied claims which said the defence headquarters had issued a warning to soldiers planning on overthrowing the government of President Muhammadu Buhari in a coup.

The defence headquarters denied the reports in a statement released by its spokesperson Nwachukwu Onyema, noting that a publication with the headline “Defence Headquarters warns soldiers against overthrowing Buhari’s regime’’ and published on November 13 by an online news platform ‘Naija News House’ was riddled with lies and fabrications.

Brig-Gen Onyema Nwachukwu said the only reason why “this grossly unprofessional and blatantly irresponsible report is receiving any attention’’ is because it was attributed to him.

“For the sake of clarity and to keep the records straight, we wish to state that at no time did the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig Gen Onyema Nwachukwu issue any statement on the subject matter. It is therefore a figment of their imagination, which did not in anyway emanate from Brig Gen Nwachukwu,’’ the statement said.

“In any case, officers and soldiers of the Nigerian Army do not need to be “warned against overthrowing Buhari’s government” as their loyalty to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and to the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces has never been in doubt. The Nigerian Army is a reputable national and patriotic institution that has fully subordinated herself to civil authority, having stood unwaveringly in defence of the nation’s democracy.’’

Source

LIB

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