Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, has pledged that the Nigerian Army would hunt down and bring to justice, the criminal elements behind the killings in Benue, Plateau and other parts of the North-Central region.
Oluyede said the Army under his leadership was fully committed to ending the spate of violence and would not allow Nigeria’s territorial integrity or internal security to be compromised by criminals.
At a media chat organised by the Nigerian Army in Akure, the Ondo State capital yesterday, the COAS said, “We shall go after them, and by God’s grace, we will get them.”
At event tagged, Media Collaboration: Panacea for Enhanced National Security and Development, the army chief reiterated that the military was fully committed to ending the spate of violence.
Represented by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2 Division Nigerian Army, Major General Obinna Onubogu, Oluyede said, “The Nigerian Army has remained engaged in Plateau, Benue, Kwara and in quite a number of states that are experiencing insecurity.
“In Benue particularly, you will see, in the coming weeks, very elaborate security arrangements to ensure that all that is going on there completely stops.”
He noted that while some of the attacks were attributed to herders, there was growing concern that some perpetrators may not even be Nigerians.
“We are mindful that some of these people may be foreign elements. The behaviour we are seeing is utterly despicable, the way they go about their work. It does not reflect any kind of national identity or value system.”
While emphasising that the military had received clear directives from President Bola Tinubu to act decisively, the COAS said, “The president has given very clear orders for us to go out there. And so we are out — fully deployed — and tackling the menace head-on.”
He, however, appealed to communities and local stakeholders to support military operations by sharing timely intelligence.
He said, “The Army cannot be everywhere at once. Nigeria is a vast country, and we are not as large in number as many people believe. We rely heavily on the support and cooperation of the local population to provide timely and credible information.”
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