We do not enlist former terrorists, says Nigerian Army

The Nigerian Army on Tuesday said it does not enlist former terrorists as speculated in some quarters. 

This is according to a communique by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier-General Onyema Nwachukwu.

The Army spokesman noted that the statement is a reaction to a video making the rounds on the internet which attempted to “draw a conclusion from the collapse of the Afghan military and tried very hard to relate it to the ongoing surrender by the Boko Haram/Islamic State West Africa Province terrorists in Nigeria”.

But the Army said that although the situation in Afghanistan calls for concerns, the security agency is not desperate and won’t recruit former terrorists. 

“There are teeming able-bodied Nigerians that are willing to join the NA and genuinely help in the fight against terrorism and other violent crimes,” the Army added. 

“The NA, therefore. is not desperate for prospective recruits to stoop so low and engage the services of former terrorists. As a general rule, it is not even recommended to absorb former fighters into the services of a regular military.”

“Surrendered terrorists will be received, processed, and passed to the appropriate government agencies saddled with the responsibility of handling them,” it further said. 

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While urging Nigerians to leave security matters for experts, the Army asked them to focus on contributing towards nation-building instead of engaging in a campaign of falsehood.

“The NA wishes to state that the campaign of falsehood embarked upon by some individuals who do not wish the nation well cannot distract its personnel from their resolve to bring an end to the violent crimes in the country,” General Nwachukwu’s communique stated.