The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo has asked the Chief of Army Staff [COAS], Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, and the Minister of Defence, Mansur Muhammad Dan Ali, to resign for making Nigeria Army a partisan institution.
Ohanaeze made the call following widespread allegations against the Defence institution of playing partisan roles in the just-concluded 2019 general election.
The spokesman of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mr. Chuks Ibegbu disclosed this in a statement he made available to ElombahNews.
Ohanaeze asked the Nigeria Army to stay out of politics or dissolve itself for its obvious partisanship.
The spokesman of the group lambasted the Army for the show of shame at INEC office in Rivers state and its partisan activities in some states of the nation.
He warned of the consequences of the Army taking sides in the politics of the country and asked the Chief of Army staff and Defence Minister to resign immediately for such act.
Similarly, owing to shameless conducts of soldiers of the Nigerian Army in the shambolic polls of 2019 in Nigeria, which widely hit air, television and other electronic waves around the world, the Southeast Based Coalition of Human Rights & Democracy Organizations (SBCHROs) has suggested to the Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] “to begin or initiate the process of registration and recognition of the Nigerian Army as a political party so that it could formally join the league of the Nigerian registered political parties.”
https://elombah.com/cso-ask-inec-to-register-army-as-political-party-replace-inec-logo-with-apcs-broom/
This medium had published several reports showing how military operatives interfered in electoral proceedings, especially in Rivers State and other Niger Delta regions.
https://elombah.com/breaking-soldiers-policemen-clash-at-inec-head-office-in-rivers/
On one occasion, the European Union Observation Mission to Nigeria said that soldiers barred them from monitoring elections in Rivers State.
The observers made the allegation in their preliminary report in Abuja on Monday.
https://elombah.com/soldiers-stopped-us-from-monitoring-rivers-polls-eu-observers/
In another report, soldiers brought to Rivers state by the serving Minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, were caught on camera invading the house of the Rivers State Commissioner for Education, Dr. Tamunosisi Gogo Jaja shortly before the election.
https://elombah.com/video-soldiers-brought-by-amaechi-caught-on-camera-invading-commissioners-house/
In another development, Ohanaeze has mourned Mr. Godwin Ofole, the Igbo World Assembly [IWA] representative in Nigeria.
Lamenting the death of Mr. Ofole , the Ohanaeze scribe said that Mr. Ofole was a committed Igbo patriot who served Ndigbo with dedication .
Ibegbu asked the family and IWA to bear the loss with fortitude.
He said that Mr Ofole liased with Ohanaeze Ndigbo to promote Igbo culture and issues in Nigeria.