The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Lucky Irabor, on Friday, declared that human rights violations allegations levelled against the Nigerian military by the news agency, Reuters, were not only shocking but also spurious.
Irabor said this when he appeared before the National Human Rights Commission investigative panel on rights violations in counter-insurgency operations by the military in the Northeast.
The CDS, who held various posts in the theatre of war in the North-East, including Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole and Commander, Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), told the panel that having been involved, there was no time he saw any abortion being carried out on women and girls to prevent regeneration of Boko Haram insurgents.
According to him, “I have been involved in the operation. I never saw any of sort (abortions). It was a surprise to me for someone to orchestrate such a report (Reuters’ report).
“I am glad that this panel was constituted to investigate the allegations. It was a rude shock that such could be attributed to the armed forces of Nigeria.”
He described the news agency’s allegation that there were over 10,000 abortions in the Northeast through a deliberate policy as a strange allusion, declaring that if such a policy was in place, it was not the responsibility of the armed forces to execute such.
“These are strange allusions. The Armed Forces of Nigeria engage in internal security to defend the people and the country and fight criminal elements.
“On what ground do we want to stop the regeneration of Boko Haram criminals? If this so-called principle is in place, it is not the responsibility of the armed forces to be involved.”
He assured that he would give the soldiers Reuters claimed it interviewed in its report immunity with a view to enabling them to come before the panel to testify.
Irabor told the panel that throughout the period he spent in the war theatre, he never heard of any group of women called wives of Boko Haram to the extent that their freedom was restricted.
According to him, what he witnessed were “those rescued who have had one association or the other with Boko Haram”, adding that these people, both male and female were Nigerian citizens who found themselves under criminals’ oppression.
Irabor said among those rescued in the war theatre were over 100 Chibok girls, some of whom were with children and asserted that if the military indeed had a policy of cleansing women of Boko Haram, they were the perfect set to be used to do so, asking, “who else could have been cleansed than the Chibok girls we rescued with their children?”
The CDS informed the panel that there were always teams from the International Red Cross, Borno State government and both local and international nongovernmental organisations and as such the military could not have carried out any “systemic, secret and illegal” abortions as claimed by Reuters.
He added that if it was a programme of the military as alleged, it was not have been in isolation as the hierarchy of the military would have been in the know, asserting that such policy never exists within the armed forces.
While describing the massacre of children claimed in the report as gory, Irabor submitted that children could not have been massacred by members of the armed forces, adding that the military code of conduct prohibits members of the forces from engaging in such.
He said engaging in such acts could even lead to a death sentence for the perpetrators.
The armed forces chief said officers and men of the Nigerian armed forces had made sacrifices and whoever wanted to disparage their image would only be discouraging the gallant men and women.
According to him, “there is no one involved in the North-East that will hear this and be happy,” submitting that the armed forces were not a ragtag but a professional armed forces.
The CDS declared that contrary to Reuters’ claim, there was nothing like “Operation no living things”, adding that he never signed any policy of such.
He informed that as of the time soldiers arrived in new Marte in January 2016, it was a deserted town where no living soul was living as Boko Haram had completely razed it, adding that he was surprised that the report named the town and Kukawa as where the alleged operation was carries out.
While admitting that there could be collateral damages in war situations worldwide as was the case in Rann, Irabor said it was a mistake which the military owned up to, adding that 14 children were massacred in Marte was an allusion.
He said soldiers could not engage in revenge on civilians knowing that they would be charged for such acts as every Nigerian soldier was conversant with this.
Irabor assured that the military would not discriminate against anyone who they are Boko Haram children when conducting its recruitment in the future.
According to him, “there is no way we could know this person is born of Boko Haram or not.”
Meanwhile, the chairman of the investigative panel, retired Justice Abdu Aboki, praised the efforts of the military in keeping Nigeria together to date, saying that, “if not for the military, Nigeria would have disintegrated by now.”
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