AHQ DCMA SENSITIZES TROOPS OF 23 BRIGADE ON PROPER CONDUCT OF THE NIGERIAN SOLDIER WITHIN THE LARGER SOCIETY (+ photos)

*CCMA assures troops of Nigerian Army support in the conduct of their legitimate duties

Army Headquarters (AHQ) Department of Civil-Military Affairs (DCMA) has sensitized troops of 23 Brigade (Bde) on the proper conduct of the Nigerian soldier within a larger society.  The sensitization workshop  took place today Thursday 7 March 2024 at the 23 Brigade Officer's Mess, Gibson Jalo Cantonment Yola, Adamawa State. 

The Special Guest of Honor, the Chief of Civil-Military Affairs (CCMA) Major General Nosakhare Ugbo who was represented by the Director, Civil-Military Affairs Brigadier General Paul Koughna says the workshop is one of the training programmes and activities organized by the Chief of Army Staff(COAS), Lt Gen TA Lagbaja in line with his (COAS) Command Philosophy which is to "transform the Nigerian Army to a well-trained, equipped and highly motivated Force towards achieving our constitutional responsibilities within a joint environment" 

The CCMA says the training is coming up when Nigerian Army personnel are deployed in all the states of the federation to curtail insecurity bedevilling the nation. He therefore urge troops to continue to conduct themselves in a professional manner assuring them that the Nigerian Army is fully behind them in conduct of their legitimate duties. He added that the workshop will give them the full understanding of what is expected of them in dealing with civilians as well as their rights as soldiers. 

He stresses that the Nigerian Army is a professional force created to defend the territory integrity of the nation. He therefore urge troops to shun any action capable of bringing the army to disrepute. 

Earlier in his welcome address, The Commander 23 Armoured Brigade, Brigadier General Paul Zawaya says the workshop is timely as the Brigade has continued to place high value on training of its personnel and has ensured that troops are kept abreast and informed on how to discharge their duties in line with global best practices. He added that the workshop will inculcate in the troops, the requisite mentality required to perform with high level of professionalism while on military operations. 

The Brigade commander therefore commended the AHQ DCMA for striving hard to maintain and improve the civil military relationship earlier existing. He urged participants to put to good use the knowledge garnered from the workshop.

The sensitization workshop witnessed well packaged and well delivered lectures, free Cataracts' Surgery Medical Outreach for patients from within and outside the Cantonment, Question and Answer session. The occasion was climaxed by the presentation of mementoes and group photograph.

ADEBAYO SAMUEL ADEWUMI

Lieutenant

Acting Assistant Director Army Public Relations

HQ 23 Brigade

7 March 2024AHQ DCMA SENSITIZES TROOPS OF 23 BRIGADE ON PROPER CONDUCT OF THE NIGERIAN SOLDIER WITHIN THE LARGER SOCIETY... CCMA assures troops of Nigerian Army support in the conduct of their legitimate duties

Army Headquarters (AHQ) Department of Civil-Military Affairs (DCMA) has sensitized troops of 23 Brigade (Bde) on the proper conduct of the Nigerian soldier within a larger society.  The sensitization workshop  took place today Thursday 7 March 2024 at the 23 Brigade Officer's Mess, Gibson Jalo Cantonment Yola, Adamawa State. 

The Special Guest of Honor, the Chief of Civil-Military Affairs (CCMA) Major General Nosakhare Ugbo who was represented by the Director, Civil-Military Affairs Brigadier General Paul Koughna says the workshop is one of the training programmes and activities organized by the Chief of Army Staff(COAS), Lt Gen TA Lagbaja in line with his (COAS) Command Philosophy which is to "transform the Nigerian Army to a well-trained, equipped and highly motivated Force towards achieving our constitutional responsibilities within a joint environment" 

The CCMA says the training is coming up when Nigerian Army personnel are deployed in all the states of the federation to curtail insecurity bedevilling the nation. He therefore urge troops to continue to conduct themselves in a professional manner assuring them that the Nigerian Army is fully behind them in conduct of their legitimate duties. He added that the workshop will give them the full understanding of what is expected of them in dealing with civilians as well as their rights as soldiers. 

He stresses that the Nigerian Army is a professional force created to defend the territory integrity of the nation. He therefore urge troops to shun any action capable of bringing the army to disrepute. 

Earlier in his welcome address, The Commander 23 Armoured Brigade, Brigadier General Paul Zawaya says the workshop is timely as the Brigade has continued to place high value on training of its personnel and has ensured that troops are kept abreast and informed on how to discharge their duties in line with global best practices. He added that the workshop will inculcate in the troops, the requisite mentality required to perform with high level of professionalism while on military operations. 

The Brigade commander therefore commended the AHQ DCMA for striving hard to maintain and improve the civil military relationship earlier existing. He urged participants to put to good use the knowledge garnered from the workshop.

The sensitization workshop witnessed well packaged and well delivered lectures, free Cataracts' Surgery Medical Outreach for patients from within and outside the Cantonment, Question and Answer session. The occasion was climaxed by the presentation of mementoes and group photograph.

ADEBAYO SAMUEL ADEWUMI

Lieutenant

Acting Assistant Director Army Public Relations

HQ 23 Brigade

7 March 2024

Photos:

TURN THE PAGE - A Poem By 'Dele Abiola

I dare you turn the pages of the age

I dare you tell us who is your sage

A saint sage who has never defrauded us

Look around southern-northern Poles of our coast

Show us who is for us

Show us who's for the wretched masses

Among them in this land of unease, 

Is there voice for the voiceless again?

The one who is not supporting Bandits

A stark religion bigotry

Full of rhetoric lies and covert evils

Talk more do little their watch word 

The generation of kill the best spare the worst

Criminals in corridors of power

Roaming round for insatiable greed

Accumulating from home to strange shores

They are not our nationalists

Who nationalizing everything in Sights for their foreign keep

From the pages of our history and moments

Who is your sage?

Good foundation and visions

Long lost to lust and power struggle

I dare you new era of nationalism must arrived

I dare you to arise and join

Or leave no hope for present and future

Here I firmly stand for a generational leadership change!

©Dele Abiola

Comrade Dele Abiola
Feeding a baby

#Ogoni9: Exoneration Ken Saro-Wiwa, 8 Others, not Pardon - Civil Society Groups tell FG

Ogoni’s have over the past 2 decades consistently demanded that an admission that the quasi-judicial process which resulted in the conviction of the Ogoni 9 was a mockery of justice orchestrated by the military government with the active collaboration of Shell to quell community demands for resource and ecological justice.

It is important to note that no civil society organization in Nigeria has asked for a presidential ‘pardon’ for Ken Saro-Wiwa, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel, and John Kpuine, who were unjustly murdered by the Sani Abacha dictatorship.

On the 22nd of October 2021, a select group of Ogoni leaders attended a parley at State House with President Muhammadu Buhari. Among other issues, the President stated that the ‘federal government will consider the request for the grant of pardon to finally close the Ogoni saga’. 

“The President made this commitment to ‘consider’ a pardon immediately after he declared that “the unfortunate incidents of the early 1990s leading to the loss of lives of distinguished sons of Ogoni land and the collateral judicial processes are indelible in our memories”

What we the civil society groups are demanding is the complete exoneration of Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni 8. It is also important to note that the President’s suggestion of granting a ‘pardon’ is tantamount to saying that the Ogoni  9 were guilty and rightly executed. We deem the proposal to ‘consider’ a pardon for Ken Saro-Wiwa and his comrades insensitive and offensive to their memory and that of other victims of environmental injustice. We also consider it a denial of the need to bring closure to the thousands of Ogonis who were victims of government-driven repression characterized by murders, rape, torture and forced exile. 

The President also used the opportunity of the parley to state that the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company Ltd (NPDC), had been granted license to re-open and operate OML11. It is pertinent to recollect that in 1993, Shell was forced to abandon its OML 11 operations located in Ogoni and pull out of the area. This was the direct outcome of passionate but peaceful campaigns by the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) led by Ken Saro-Wiwa. MOSOP had called the attention of the world to the poverty, neglect and environmental destruction which decades of oil exploitation had bequeathed on the Ogoni people.  MOSOP had also demanded fairer benefits to the Ogoni people from oil wealth, as well as remediation and compensation for the ecological damage caused by the reckless activities of oil companies.  These have still not been addressed. 

The report of UNEP indicated massive soil and water contamination in Ogoniland, which has significantly compromised sources of livelihood and was slowly poisoning the inhabitants. It was only about 3 years ago, that the government began actual clean-up with the agency called HYPREP. It is therefore shocking that while the clean-up is ongoing, the government is prioritizing restarting of oil extraction in the same area being cleaned up, with all its polluting impacts. 

Civil Society groups maintain that  is important to reiterate that proposing an unnecessary ‘pardon’ for the Ogoni nine, seemingly in exchange for support to reopen OML 11, is in bad faith and capable to breeding conflict. If the President is interested in reversing the injustice which the murder of the Ogoni 9 represents, the appropriate action is to exonerate the Ogoni martyrs and apologize to the Ogoni people. Apologize for the destruction of their environment, the killing of their people, the loss of their livelihoods, the destruction of their villages, the forced exile of their people and the murder of their leaders 

It is also pertinent to observe that the move to resume the extraction of oil in Ogoniland, happening against the backdrop of the contentious clean-up of polluted sites in Ogoni, raises fears and fuels cynicism. It is worrying that the government would think of resuming oil extraction in Ogoniland when the pollution of the last decades is yet to be cleaned, decrepit installations are yet to be decommissioned and the many recommendations of UNEP are yet to be fully complied with.

The ecological disaster in Ogoniland provides a cue for the government to take actions towards the clean-up of the entire Niger Delta .We advice the President to institute strategies for a region wide clean-up of decades of environmental pollution by setting aside $100 billion dollars as takeoff fund for clean-up.

Endorsed By:

1. Rivers state  Civil society Organizations

2. Take it Back Movement 

3. Ogoni Solidarity Forum

4. We the People 

5. Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria

6. Health of Mother Earth Foundation

7. Media Awareness and Justice Initiative (MAJI)

8. Peace Point Development Foundation, Nigeria

9. Policy Alert, Nigeria

10. Kabetkache Women Resource Development Centre, Nigeria

11. People Advancement Centre, Nigeria

12. Lekeh  Development Foundation, Nigeria

13. SWAYA, Nigeria

14. Rights Advocacy and Development Center (RADEC)

15. Community Development Advocacy foundation (CODAF)

16. Oilwatch  Africa

#ENDSARSMEMORIAL: We Will Win - A Poem by Ola Olawale

 Day 7 Tributes

We Will Win

Pain before gain

Gain after pain

Work before Rest

Rest after work

Battle before victory

Victoria after battle

We mustn't relent

We Will Win

History will absolve Us

Standing here could be odd

It is not a place for everyone

It is a place for the selfless

A place of love and humanity

Not of gold and greed

Enduring but rewarding

We will win

Wake up the wretched of the earth

Rise the people of the world

Sitting is harmful

Rise and take your birthplace

Freedom won't come cheap

It must and will be fought for

It is a war

And We will Win

Our victory is certain

If we fight

Our freedom is certain

If we dare to struggle

We must not be discouraged

We must remain undefeatable

History is on our side

We will Win

We will win

Let unite and fight

We will win

Let all say no to injustice

We will win

Let raise our voice against inequality

We will win

The People United can never be defeated

#ENDSARSMEMORIAL: Together - A Poem by Ola Olawale

 Day 6 tributes

Together

This is our fight

And together we must

If you like stay on the fence

It is still your fight

If you like Japa(Seek Green Pasture)

It is still your fight

This fight is invisible

Our enemies are our brothers

Among them, we wine and dine

Clothed in our color of skin

but our interests differ

Unlike the era of Zik and the Pilot

The color was obvious

Just like the enemy

We the wretched of the earth

Must unite in our purpose

Fight hand in hand

And defeat our common enemies

We must defeat the division among us

And strengthen our commonplace

Humanity must be our drive

Among our enemies

There are no race or color

They are united beyond

The place of worship Or what we call God

Their goal is one "To Exploit"

In whatever form

And that is constant

We must unite

We must fight

We must defeat them

We must rise to power

Then we will rebuild and consolidate

This is not a child play

It is a war to win or keep agonizing

If we fight, we may win

If we stay on the fence

Then we have lost

History is on our side

Together we will win

Together we will sing

Song of victory

letter to the wretched of the earth

PRESS RELEASE: UBER DRIVER ASSAULTED DURING ENDSARS MEMORIAL PROTEST DEMANDS N500M COMPENSATION FOR VIOLATION OF HIS RIGHTS, SEIZURE AND DESTRUCTION OF HIS VEHICLE AND PROSECUTION OF CULPRITS

We have written to the Lagos State Government through the Attorney General of Lagos State to demand payment of

the sum of N500,000,000 (Five Hundred Million Naira) as compensation to Mr. Adedotun Clement for the gross violation of his fundamental rights to dignity of the human person, personal liberty and property and for the deprivation of his source of livelihood and the destruction of his vehicle.

Adedotun Clement is the innocent Uber driver that was assaulted by some officers of the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Corps (LNSC) and Nigeria Police Force during the first anniversary of the #EndSARS protest at Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos.

In addition to payment of monetary compensation, we also demanded that disciplinary measures be taken against the culprits who assaulted Adedotun, and that they should be prosecuted in court in line with the Anti-Torture Act and the Criminal Law of Lagos State.

Also, we are equally demanding a written apology from the state government.

It should be noted that the vehicle of Mr. Adedotun has been returned but in a bad condition. The agents of the state government broke and damaged the front windscreen of his Toyota Corolla. The vehicle was in good condition before it was towed away on Wednesday, 20th October, 2021. But upon reaching where the vehicle was taken to on Friday, 22nd October, 2021, Adedotun saw the destruction done to his vehicle by agents of the state government.

The implication is that he cannot use the vehicle to earn a living until it is repaired.

My attention has been drawn to the public statement by the Lagos State Neighborhood Safety Agency (LNSA) wherein it is stated that two officers of the agency were subjected to orderly room trial, found guilty of assault and general unruly behaviour and suspended for two months.

While we commend the Lagos State Government for admitting that the conduct of its agents was criminal and unprofessional, we find the two months suspension meted on the two officers grossly insufficient and unacceptable. It is not a deterrence. The officers should be dismissed and diligently prosecuted in a court of law to serve as a deterrence to others.

Finally, we are expecting the Lagos State Government to respond to our modest demands within 48 hours or we will have no other option but to commence legal proceedings to seek redress for Adedotun.

INIBEHE EFFIONG, ESQ.

Principal Counsel.

ENDSARSMEMORIAL: ILLEGAL ARREST BRUTALIZATION OF DAILY POST REPORTER; CLAMP-DOWN AND AND DISPERSION OF PEACEFUL PROTEST BY NIGERIAN POLICE FORCE-AN ABUSE OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TAKEN TOO FAR

(Being a Press Statement of the TAKE IT BACK MOVEMENT, Osun State)

Yesterday, members of the Endsars movement, mainly youths took to the street in Osun state and across the world to commemorate one year anniversary of the biggest mass protest in the history of Nigeria. It was on record that these protesters were exercising their rights in accordance with the law. Members of the press were also present to cover the event within the dictates of their profession. 

The protests which started at about 11 am from Ita-olookan in Osogbo,was bid to end at Oke-fia. We want to put it on record that the men of the Nigerian police attacked protesters and reporters with the aim of arresting them and in the process arrested Daily post reporter in the state,Mr Sikiru Obarayese at about 100 meters away from Oke-fia where the protest is bid to be ended . He was arrested on the instruction of The DPO of Dugbe police station who quickly started a process of his arraignment until he was forced to stop after pressures from his colleagues through the commissioner of police. It is also on record that he was stripped naked brutalised and tortured by police men, about 12 of them at Dugbe police division.

Similarly, We want to put it on record that the police and DSSS men has been chasing organizers of the Endsarsmemorial since about 3 days before the protest. This is evident in the way the Commissioner of police has been calling and threatening to arrest one of our the organizers; Olushayo babawale ogunleye. 

Also, efforts were made by the police to stop the press parley that was bid to be held at NUJ correspondence and when the venue was changed,the police and DSSS made further attempts to stampede the press parley. If was further observed that protest organizers was been trailed by some unknown men on a motorcycle around Ogo-oluwa the new venue for the press parley. Worthy of Observation is also that Combined forces of Police and DSSS took charge of the convergence point of the protest, harrasing protesters on arrival.

Based on the foregoing, It is pertinent to state that Protest is a universally recognized fundamental right of citizens and it would never be given up to any security and government agents based on any threat. We hereby wants to equivocally state that the Nigerian police has become a puppet of the ruling class for too long and this should stop. We want to state that the primary function of the police is security of life and property, thus it is our expectation that the police should protect protesters at all time. Hence we demand that;

1 The DPO of Dupe police division and all the twelve officers involved should be investigated and prosecuted for the illegall arrest and torture of Mr Sikiru Obarayese, the Daily Post reporter.

2 The commissioner of police should unravel the unknown men who have been trailing Olushayo babawale ogunleye, One of the organizers of Endsarsmemorial. We maintain that if anything happens to him, the CP would be held responsible.

3 The Nigerian police force should investigate and made public the killers of ALIMI AHMED and MUTIU LAWAL FRESH murdered in cold blood during the univited and provocative visit of Governor Gboyega Oyetola to the barricades at the #EndSARS protests last year October.

4 The Nigerian police force should publicly apologize for attacking, arresting and dehumanizing Mr Sikiru Obarayese.

We want to state clearly that Protests, such as was held yesterday would never be stopped in a democracy, therefore police and other security agency should stop brutalisation of protesters and rather protect them at all time.

Samson Tola

Owolabi  Opeyemi

TIB Ag Coordinator and Secretary.

#ENDSARSMEMORIAL: Police distrupt peaceful protesters in Osogbo, numbers of those arrested yet to be confirmed

A profile picture

The peaceful protesters matching in Commemoration of those killed last year in Osogbo and else where across the country where forcefully dispersed by the Osun State command of the Nigeria police.

The Osun State Police Command had on Tuesday issued a threatening and warning statement that it was not going to allowed any gathering in remembrance of those courageous youths that were killed by the state for demanding an end to police brutality and requesting for good governance.

 

A reporter of Daily Trust has been confirmed to have been arrested during the distruption of the protesters. DAILLY Post Reporter, Sikiru Obarayese was arrested in Osogbo on Wednesday as police dispersed protesters marking a year memorial anniversary of #EndSAR

 If any other, the number of person(s) arrested during the distruption of the remembrance procession in Osogbo, the Osun State capital has not been assertained.

Protest in Nigeria is a fundamental and constitutional right but curtailed and tyrannically abrogated under the lawless Major General Muhammadu Buhari led Federal regime.

Photos, prior the distruption by the men of the Nigeria police: