The Nigerian Army (NA) has dismissed reports that it detained a soldier because he converted from Islam to Christianity, noting that, he was detained for preaching on social media while wearing his uniform.
The army in a press statement by Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, Director of Army Public Relations on Tuesday stated that Lance Corporal Musa Adamu was invited for questioning afterward and instead of him to appear before the panel, he absconded from the army.
The Nigerian Army added that his arrest was not unlawful and that it is adhering to its ethics, traditions, and military laws.
“Contrary to reports being circulated in social media that a personnel of the Nigerian Army (NA), Lance Corporal Musa Adamu is in detention for converting from Islam to Christianity and preaching the gospel, the reality is that the soldier is in custody for violation of some provisions of the Armed Forces Act,” the Nigerian Army said in a statement.
“The awful report credited to SaharaReporters is not only a misrepresentation of the true situation but an outrageous falsehood tainted with religious bigotry, being peddled against the Nigerian Army; a professional institution guided by well-established ethics and tradition in all its activities and administration of personnel.
The Nigerian Army added that “This is aside from the unbiased premium of place accorded the spiritual concern and growth of personnel as well as the sensitivity it attaches to religious practices amongst personnel.
“To set the records straight, Lance Corporal Musa Adamu, a personnel of the Amphibious Training School was attached to 63 Brigade to participate in an ongoing operation, during which he was found preaching in uniform on a social media platform in violation of extant Social Media policy for the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
“This prompted his invitation for interrogation by relevant authorities. Rather than present himself for the investigation, he absconded for about six and a half months, resulting in the declaration of the soldier on Absence Without Official Leave (AWOL). The action of the personnel violates Section 58 (a) (b) Obstruction of Provost Officers and Section 59 (a) (b) Absence Without Leave,” the Nigerian Army said.
“It must be clarified, that once a personnel is absent from his unit for 7 days without any justification, he will be declared on AWOL. This automatically triggers the freezing of his salary account, until the personnel returns to the unit and is arraigned and sanctioned.
“It is equally important to state that contrary to the erroneous impression that the soldier is being victimized for converting from Islam to Christianity and for preaching the gospel, the soldier was rather taken into custody for investigation and pursuant to statutory provisions enshrined in the Armed Forces Act CAP 20: The Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, which the soldier contravened.
“His detention is therefore not unlawful,” the army stated.
Noting that “It is expedient to point out, that every personnel of the Nigerian Army functions under a Corps or Department with stipulated statutory responsibilities manned by qualified personnel trained to effectively execute those duties.
“Hence, religious affairs of the NA are handled by designated clergies in the Directorates of Chaplain Services (Protestant), (Roman Catholic) and Islamic Affairs. Personnel of these Directorates are the ones mandated to conduct all religious activities to cater to the spiritual needs of all personnel of the NA, both in the theatres of operations and within the barracks.
“The question begging for an answer is, if the NA allowed the soldier to change his religion, why then would the NA victimize him? It is ironic therefore, that an institution that promotes the spiritual wellbeing of its personnel is alleged to have detained the soldier for the expression of his faith, even when it is abundantly clear that he has the opportunity to also change his Corps to any of the Army’s Chaplaincy.
“The NA will not be hesitant to state that it is guided by ethics, traditions, and military laws, which direct personnel on their conduct. Violation of these ideals and statutory stipulations evokes sanctions, irrespective of the faith of the offender.
“Consequently, the NA denounces the libelous publication capable of causing disaffection amongst personnel as well as bringing disrepute and distractions to the NA from its trajectory of discharging its constitutional mandate to protect the territorial integrity of Nigeria, particularly at this crucial time that it is turning the tide against insurgents and other criminal elements across the country.”
The Nigerian Army said “The general public is therefore enjoined to ignore the baseless report, aimed at scoring a cheap goal by denigrating an institution committed to the restoration of peace and stability in Nigeria.
“The support of the good citizens of this country is paramount to the success of the Nigerian Army at this crucial time and not unfounded and unconstructive narrations.”
