?Calls for independent investigation of sexual violations allegations in the Nigeria Army

Foremost Civil Rights Advocacy Group, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has described as shadow chasing and inappropriate the decision of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to go after the suspected armed Fulani terrorists masquerading as herders that persistently attacked parts of Plateau state including the Christmas eve mass slaughter of over 200 villagers in parts of Plateau state last year.

HURIWA has also asked the National Assembly to organise a transparent, open and an accountable public hearing into cases of sexual harassment and violations of female soldiers by senior officers.

Besides, HURIWA said it was shocked that the Nigeria Army in Plateau State was more concerned about organising inter-village meetings between native villagers and the Fulani settlers on peace-building processes as if the Armed Forces is the agency of the Federal government whose mandate is to advance inter-ethnic harmony instead of the Army to focus on defending the territorial integrity of Nigeria and preventing large scale terrorist attacks that have become a recurring decimal in Plateau State.

?The call that was made by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 3 Division Nigerian Army (NA) and Commander Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), Major General Abdulsalam Abubakar, during a stakeholders engagement with the elders of Butura Community in Bokkos LGA at Maxwell Khobe Cantonment Jos, which spoke to the issue of inter-ethnic harmony, good as it is, appears to be diversionary because it is not yet on record that those terrorists that massacred the villagers on consistent basis including the large scale massacres of over 200 villagers just 24 hours to last year?s Christmas. We in the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria are in no way against holding meetings with communities towards achieving peace-building efforts but that is not the fundamental duty of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.?

The media reported that while briefing the GOC, the District Head of Butura, Dr. John Gabriel Makwal, who led the Butura elders delegation to the meeting, expressed his gratitude to 3 Div and OPSH for their tireless effort towards restoring security to their communities.

Speaking through the National President of the Association, Mr. Philip Julson, the District Head noted that the deployment of more troops and enablers in the affected communities gave the people hope and confidence in the security agencies, hence making the displaced persons return back to their various communities.

He equally appreciated the OPSH for providing succor to the communities affected. He further solicited increased security presence in some of the vulnerable villages and the establishment of a military-civil relations committee in the district to enhance a cooperative approach to dispute and conflict management as the harvest season approaches.

Responding, the GOC assured that the military will continue to support and protect the lives and property of the citizenry, welcoming the idea of establishing a civil ? military relations outfit in the district; stating that such will enable the hunters and civil security outfit to cover some areas where security agencies were not present.

Abubakar also assured them of the resolve of 3 Division/OPSH to address all the security challenges using both kinetic and non-kinetic efforts in the state, urging them to report every security issue to the sector headquarters utilizing the new toll free lines for prompt action.

HURIWA in a media statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko however stated that although it wasn?t against the promotion of civil-military relations but that these partnership for stability and security can best be achieved if there are empirical evidence to demonstrate that those who committed genocidal killings in Plateau State no matter their Ethnicities or religious beliefs, are arrested, prosecuted and sanctioned to show that nobody is above the law.

?Whereas it is our best of intentions that the objectives of civil-military relations are actualised as soon as possible in Plateau State and all parts of Nigeria, but it is our deepest conviction that the armed forces and police should be more focused and directed towards preventing genocides, preventing mass killings, kidnappings for ransom and checking the infiltration of armed non-state actors into the Country and we think that if the Nigeria Army in Plateau State should work with all stakeholders in the security forces such as police and DSS to go after terrorists and arrest them for swift prosecution and punishment, only then can the goals of civil-military relations be best accomplished. Those who slaughtered Plateau State natives sometimes on December 24th should be arrested, prosecuted and punished. Those who Head security institutions must be held accountable. This is how democracies everywhere work.?

HURIWA which advocated an independent probe of sexual abuses of female junior operatives by senior Army officers recalled that a former female soldier, Private Ruth Ogunleye, has recently taken to social media to reveal alleged disturbing allegations of sexual harassment involving senior officers within the Nigerian Army.

In a video posted online, Ogunleye accused the Chief of Army Staff, General Taoreed Lagbaja, of asking her to send her nude photos and even buying her an iPhone Pro Max.

In the video, Ogunleye called out the Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy, who she said advised her to voluntarily resign from the army.

According to Ogunleye, the Minister requested that she leave her post, which she did by submitting a handwritten voluntary discharge letter.

This letter was then forwarded to the Chief of Army Staff, who later converted her voluntary discharge into a medical discharge in order for her to receive pension and other benefits.

Ogunleye claims that this conversion was based on a false assertion of mental illness, which she disputes, pointing to the absence of any medical evidence to support such a diagnosis.

She said: ?I am calling out the Minister of Women Affairs. Please, come forward and tell the truth. You requested that I leave my job, which I did voluntarily, and I submitted the letter to you. You then forwarded it to the Chief of Army Staff, requesting that I be released to your office to work with you.

?On July 1, 2024, the Chief of Army Staff called me on video and instructed me to convert my voluntary discharge to a medical one so that I could benefit from pensions and other packs. I took screenshots of everything that transpired. You also requested my nude photos, which I sent you, and you bought me an iPhone Pro Max. So where does this claim of mental illness come from? You said you were helping me because we are from the same state, but you still asked for my nude photos and I sent them.?

This is not the first time Ogunleye has spoken out about her experience. In January 2024, she used her TikTok platform to publicly accuse Colonel I.B. Abdulkareem, Colonel G.S. Ogor, and Brigadier General I.B. Solebo of sexual harassment, including attempts to assault her, administering injections against her will, and confining her to a psychiatric hospital after she rejected their sexual advances.

Despite her claims, the Nigerian Army, through its spokesperson, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, dismissed the allegations as baseless, stating that medical evaluations showed Ogunleye was suffering from a condition that made her ?medically vulnerable.?

However, Ogunleye has consistently called for transparency and a public release of the investigation into her allegations. ?I want to say a big thank you to the Nigerian Army and its spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Onyema Nwachukwu. It is no longer news that I was discharged from the service on June 15, 2024. I humbly request that the Nigerian Army publish the outcome of the investigation that led to my discharge,? Ogunleye said, urging the army to post the findings on their social media platforms for public scrutiny.

In a separate post, Ogunleye pleaded with the Minister of Women Affairs to come forward and tell the truth about her involvement in the case. ?You requested that I leave my job, and I submitted my handwritten voluntary resignation letter to you, which you gave to the Army. Please come out and tell the truth, ma,? she implored.

HURIWA said it is not possible for the Army to adequately probe such sexual violations involving senior military officers because the armed forces have a terrible records of cover ups which necessitates the call for proper accountability and transparency.

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