Nigerian Army Clarifies Detention of Soldier, Denies Religious Conversion as Reason
The Nigerian Army has issued a statement contradicting reports circulating on social media that Lance Corporal Musa Adamu is being detained for converting from Islam to Christianity and preaching the gospel. According to the Army spokesperson, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, this information is false and misleading. The soldier is actually in custody for violating certain provisions of the Armed Forces Act.
The Army strongly condemns the misrepresentation of the situation and considers it an outrageous falsehood driven by religious bigotry. The institution is guided by well-established ethics and traditions in all its operations and personnel administration, and places great emphasis on the spiritual well-being of its members as well as religious practices.
The statement clarifies that Lance Corporal Musa Adamu, who is attached to the Amphibious Training School, was assigned to the 63 Brigade as part of an ongoing operation. During this time, he was found preaching while wearing his uniform on a social media platform, which goes against the existing Social Media policy for the Armed Forces of Nigeria. As a result, he was invited for interrogation by the relevant authorities. However, rather than cooperating with the investigation, he absconded for approximately six and a half months. This led to his declaration as “Absence Without Official Leave” (AWOL).
The soldier’s actions are a violation of Section 58 (a) (b) of the Armed Forces Act, which pertains to obstruction of provost officers, as well as Section 59 (a) (b) which deals with absence without leave. It is important to note that if a personnel is absent from their unit without justification for seven days, they are considered AWOL. In such cases, their salary account is frozen until they return to their unit and face the necessary disciplinary actions.
The statement further emphasizes that the soldier’s detention is not due to his conversion to Christianity or his preaching of the gospel, contrary to misleading impressions. Rather, it is a result of the investigation and enforcement of statutory provisions outlined in the Armed Forces Act CAP 20: The Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, which the soldier has violated. Therefore, his detention is in accordance with the law and is not unlawful.