The Nigerian Army has refuted accusations of mass executions in the country’s South-east.
According to the Army, Simon Ekpa, a faction leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra, accused the army of murdering innocent residents in the South East and putting their bodies in the river.
However, the Army, in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Director of Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, denied the claims.
He further stated that the video published by Ekpa to support his assertions was intended to stir citizens against the army.
The statement read, “The Nigerian Army has noted with dismay a mischievous and systematic campaign of calumny by Simon Ekpa, a self-acclaimed leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafran terrorists’ group.
“The self-acclaimed leader, through spurious and unfounded claims, raised alarm on a viral video alleging that troops of the NA are carrying out a mass killing of innocent Igbos at a river and dumping them in the water.
“The report also contained some unimaginable and not well-couched falsehoods targeted at whipping up negative sentiments against troops and inciting anarchy in the South East region.”
Onyema clarified that the men in Ekpa’s video are not Nigerian Army members.
He added that the people in the video are from the Nigerian Navy and were conducting a normal test firing of a weapon system mounted on a vehicle to protect the safety of other road users and commuters on the route.
“Contrary to the falsehood being spread from the devious propaganda machinery of the desperate and self-serving terrorists’ leader, the NA wishes to state that it has conducted a comprehensive investigation on the allegations made by Simon Ekpa and his associates.
“Accordingly, we wish to categorically refute these baseless claims by throwing more light on the occurrence.
“In the first instance, the troops in the video footage are not personnel of the Nigerian Army, as the insignia visible on their berets identifies them as personnel of the Nigerian Navy.
“They were engaged in a routine test firing of a weapon system mounted on a vehicle, and to ensure the safety of other road users and commuters, the troops took precautionary measures by temporarily halting vehicular movement along the route until the test firing was safely concluded,” the statement added.
Onyema mentioned that findings by the service revealed that the incident was in the South West as opposed to the South East region being claimed by Ekpa.
He said, “Observers were also kept at a safe distance, maintaining transparency and prioritising the safety of all involved.
Furthermore, preliminary data show that the incident occurred in the Southwest portion of the country rather than the Southeast, as false alarmists and propagandists have claimed.
“Furthermore, it was observed that there was no evidence to support the assertion that individuals were being shot at in the river, nor has there been any report from local communities regarding the discovery of corpses in the area.”
However, he asked residents to dismiss Ekpa’s accusations.
Onyema said, “Consequently, the NA wishes to enjoin the public to disregard the unfounded claims and irredeemable falsehood being propagated by Simon Ekpa and his associates, whose apparent objective is to disseminate misinformation and incite unrest.
“The NA and indeed sister services and other security agencies remain steadfast in our commitment to maintaining peace and order and ensuring the safety and security of all citizens in the country. The Nigerian Army is vigilant and prepared to counter any attempt to destabilise the Southeast region.”
