Coup Fever: Military Warns Soldiers, Nigerians

By Tosin Olatokunbo

The Defence Headquarters, DHQ has warned Nigerians to desist from inciting the military against the government.

The warning came on the crest of a comment by the National Chairman of the National Democratic Party, NDP, Chidi Chukwuanyi, that the worsening state of corruption in the country could lead to a military coup.

“The state of corruption in the country calls for the replication of the Ghanaian experience under former President Jerry Rawlings in Nigeria,” the NDP chairman said.

But in a statement on Monday, the Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, DMO, Major John Enenche said “what Chidi Chukwuanyi is calling for is a combination of unpopular acts of insurrection and mutiny, which cannot be taken for granted by the Armed Forces of Nigeria.”

According to the statement titled RE-“NIGERIA NEEDS A RAWLINGS NOW —NDP,” the DHQ stated that the armed forces will not upturn the nation’s nascent democracy.

The Defence spokesman said “clearly and unequivocally that the Nigerian Military is a force that is in consonance with all global best practices and cannot be misguided by any individual or group” adding that “the Armed Forces of Nigeria is totally loyal to the President Commander-in-Chief and fully subordinated to the civil authorities of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.

He said however that the military is not taking the statement for granted, reminding soldiers not to forget that their oath of duty to the country.

The statement read “While the Defence Headquarters does not wish to join issues in any way, it is instructive to observe that this unguided utterance targeted at the Nigerian Military is inciting and investigative

What Chidi Chukwuanyi is calling for is a combination of unpopular acts of insurrection and mutiny, which cannot be taken for granted by the Armed Forces of Nigeria.

Consequently, I am directed by the High Command of the Nigerian Military to let the general public know and remind personnel of the Armed Forces of Nigeria;

* That all officers and men of the Nigerian Military swore to an oath of allegiance to be totally loyal to the civil authority of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and protect the constitution. This translates to unalloyed loyalty to the President Commander in Chief and full subordination to the civil authorities of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

*That all officers and men of the Armed Forces of Nigeria are to continue to abide by the constitutional provision, in Section 217 sub-section 2 (c) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, “To suppress insurrection and act in aid of civil authorities to restore order”. Any act to the contrary is unconstitutional

*That all officers and men of the Nigerian Military are further reminded of offences contained in Armed Forces Act CAP A 20, The laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, which include among others; Mutiny in Sections 52 and 53, which if committed are punishable

* I am to further directed to state clearly and unequivocally that the Nigerian Military is a force that is in consonance with all global best practices and cannot be misguided by any individual or group. And for the avoidance of doubt, the Armed Forces of Nigeria is totally loyal to President Commander-in-Chief and fully subordinated to the civil authorities of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Meanwhile, some concerned Nigerians have raised N365,000 for the wife of Lance Corporal Martins Idakpani to cater for the family following the arrest of her husband by the Nigerian Army.

Martins was arrested on June 23, 2020 after appearing in a viral video where he accused the nation’s security chiefs of compromising the battle against terrorists and armed bandits.

The soldier who revealed how the military ordered the illegal detention of some soldiers, who demanded better weapons and ammunition to combat Boko Haram and other terrorist groups in the country, has since been kept in prison custody waiting to be court martial.