By Oladimeji Odeyemi
Again, the undue fixation on the internal affairs of the Nigerian Army continues. This time around, the spin, falsehood and misrepresentation is tied around about 365 soldiers who were recently disengaged after attaining the 35-year statutory age for retirement in the Service.
Of course, these purveyors of fake news went out to spin the report with support from their accomplices from online and traditional media outlets to be that, the affected soldiers left the Service for low morale occasioned by poor leadership and motivation.
But reacting on its official Twitter handle, the Army described the report as “Fake and mischievous news story by supporters of Boko Haram designed to dampen the morale of the gallant and patriotic soldiers”.
“The 365 soldiers who left the army disengaged in a normal routine exercise at the end of their service. The Nigerian army is not in short supply of Nigerians willing to join its ranks. 4, 600 patriots recently joined the Nigerian Army of which a large proportion opted to go into the Special Force fighting terrorism.”
Added to this, different insider accounts also affirmed that the affected soldiers were officially notified via an internal memo and that the disengagement is an annual routine exercise where soldiers and officers who have attained the statutory years of retirement are eased out from the Service and replaced.
Also, feedbacks from troops in the frontline denied reports of low morale and that the soldiers are well motivated, happy and are ready to fight for their fatherland which is the professional responsibility of the Nigerian Army.
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For the Fifth columnists’, who habitually impede in the affairs of the Nigerian Army for whatever reasons, their target is apparently the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, whose expertise and high sense of professionalism is the bane of their loathing for the Nigerian Army.
While it is amusing that some people enjoy playing politics around anything that has to do with the Army, it is more befuddling that some members of the Fourth Realm of the Estate have become willing tools in the hands of these misnomers whose bellies direct their conduct.
If there is any institution that has clad itself with a garment of honor in this country and beyond, it is the Nigerian Army, and various attestations, locally and internationally, accede to this.
But for saboteurs, every means to dent the image and destabilize the rank and file of the Army is a daily obligation they must embark on. Thus, without resort to even common sense, they fabricate stories, conceive lies and cast damaging innuendos to present the Nigerian Army hierarchy in a bad light.
If not for the depravity of their minds, why would anyone deliberately twist a statutory disengagement which occurs within every system, to be a tales by moonlight story of disaffection over unimproved allowances, lack of interest and poor weapons for combat? What a contemptible reasoning!
Well, at the risk of being accused of living in the past, the giant strides of General Buratai over the last five years speak for themselves and resonates among Nigerians especially those in the North West, Federal Capital Territory and the North East. There is clearly no gain saying the fact that the Nigerian Army under Gen Buratai is clearly a success story especially in the theatre of operations.
While they are bent on playing politics of interest and pocket, Nigerians have since realized that the military, especially the Nigerian Army are currently engaging in asymmetric warfare and not the conventional warfare. Of course, the challenges are loaded with such type of warfare, not just in Nigeria, but other climes too. But it is cheerful that the competence and patriotism of General Buratai and our troops gives a landing turning point.
No doubt, the decision to disengaged the soldiers was geared towards fulfilling a systemic purpose that will advertently reinvigorate the system for greater professional effectiveness and efficiency. But the mischief makers cum compromised media will not think about these ideals, rather, they prefer to go public with their fixated and coloured mindset than getting in touch with the Directorate of Army Public Relations, which is just a phone call away, to clarify issues.
To sift the wheat from the chaff, it is instructive to say that the Nigerian Army is a voluntary organisation and enlistment is also voluntary. It is pertinent to however state that the maximum permissible length of Service for a personnel is 35 years. It is also pertinent to mention that the Nigerian Army does recruitment every year, sometimes twice a year and so when these personnel attain 35 years in Service, it is collective and as such they leave as a batch.
But that is not just the end, after all, because when leaving, the Armed Forces provides a means of learning a vocation at the point of exit as part of post service settlement. This vocation is usually undertaken at the Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC) Oshodi for six months, after which the personnel is discharged to the reserve.
The important thing to note, however, is that the Army is voluntary and Nigerian Army personnel are motivated, irrespective of negative and discouraging news from subversive elements, working for some foreign and domestic interests.
From the foregoing, it is clear that this news item is anything but true and a figment of the imagination of the writers and purveyors. Discharge and retirement in the Nigerian Army is routine and does not need publication. However, if such list of personnel due for discharge or retirement is inadvertently sighted by unauthorised or unscrupulous persons, it should not be mischievously published and portrayed as a loss of interest in the military profession.
Nigerian Army and indeed Nigerian Armed Forces remains the only institution that conducts regular annual or biannual recruitment based on exigencies. And the interest of Nigerians in such recruitment exercises are always overwhelming, leading to application of stringent criteria to select most qualified candidates.
It is clear to all and sundry that a deliberate campaign to distract the troops following renewed onslaught against the remnants of the terrorists led by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Buratai, is in its full throttle. Thankfully, Nigerians have seen beyond the veils of fake news and their purveyors. They are apparently standing with the military and have taken ownership of it with their glowing support. How much can the saboteurs do to break the resolve of the people is what is left to be seen.
- Oladimeji Odeyemi, a security analyst and a counter terrorism expert contributed this article from Ibadan, Oyo State.
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