U.S. Nigeria Law Group condemns mistreatment of 366 military students

The U.S. Nigeria Law Group, a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) based in Washington, the United States, has condemned the reported mistreatment of 366 military students in Nigeria as “reprehensible”.

This was contained in a statement issued by Emmanuel Ogebe, Esq. on behalf of the Group and made available to News Band.

In the statement entitled “Nigeria’s mistreatment of 366 military scholars reprehensible“, Ogebe accused the President Muhammadu Buhari’s regime of “needlessly exacerbating dubious distinction as having most out-of-school population”.

Ogebe’s statement is premised on a letter dated October 10, 2022, and addressed to the Chief of Army Staff at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja, signed by the foremost public interest advocate lawyer and activist, Femi Falana SAN.

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN)

In the letter, Falana condemned the directive requesting immediate withdrawal of 366 personnel currently studying civil courses in various Army training schools in Nigeria as “unfair, discriminatory and wrongful”.

According to him, the various schools advertised, offered admissions and duly admitted the personnel to study their respective civil courses.

The personnel, meanwhile, had resumed classes, partaken of semester assessments and prepared for 2nd semester examinations scheduled for August 8, 2022.

In the letter tagged “RE: Army directive for immediate withdrawal of admitted 366 personnel studying civil courses in Army schools“, Falana wrote:

“Your recent directive under reference, requesting immediate withdrawal of 366 personnel currently studying civil courses in various Army training schools in Nigeria… [is] unfair, discriminatory and wrongful for the following reasons:

1. That it was the various schools that advertised, offered admissions and duly admitted the personnel to study their respective civil courses.

2. That the personnel on their part particularly the 366 in ND1 and HD1 now affected had resumed classes, taken part of their semester assessments and prepared to take their 2nd semester examinations scheduled to commence on Monday 8th August 2022.

“Consequently, we are of the firm view that if the Army policy and guidelines referred to in your directive was in anyway violated, such violation was done by the Army itself and not the innocent students.

“Accordingly, the sin of the Nigerian Army should not be visited on the innocent personnel/ students who are craving for better skills to serve the Army better.

“If those in ND2 and HND2 whose admissions apparently also contravened the cited policy and guidelines are allowed to complete their programmes on account of being in final years as stated in your directive, it will amount to selective justice and clear discrimination against those in ND1 and HND1 who by your directive are to immediately but wrongfully be withdrawn.

“We therefore prayerfully request for the Withdrawal or Suspension of the implementation of the directive to enable all personnel who had been duly admitted including the 366 personnel in ND1 and HND1 to complete their respective civil courses.

“Take notice that the Army having successfully admitted the students to study their various civil courses cannot be legally be heard to complain. We shall take the appropriate legal action to enforce the fundamental rights of the affected students , seeking redress in the event of your refusal to consider our request herein.

“We do hope however that you will as usual be guided by the dictates of fairness and Justice by reversing and or withdrawing the directive.”

Throwing weight behind the position of Falana, the U.S. Nigeria Law Group expressed discontent by “the recent action of the Nigerian Army in withdrawing servicemen, who were enrolled in school at their own expense, before the completion of their studies”.

The group noted that Nigeria’s children in universities were held hostage to the government versus the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) imbroglio for over half a year.

Hence, “it is inconceivable that a right-thinking government would similarly kick out soldiers schooling in military academic institutions.”

It added: “As it stands, the government is now responsible for more students currently out of school than even Boko Haram the terror group that has sought to stamp out western education.

“Nigeria has the unenviable distinction of having the most out-of-school children at over 10 million. Rather than addressing this travesty, the government of the day has added university students to the mix and now even military students in what can be seen as an almajirinization or Boko haramization of the Nigerian educational space.

Human Rights lawyer, Barrister Emmanuel Ogebe of the U.S. Nigeria Law Group

“An educated military is a benefit to a nation. Soldiers who dwell in harsh conditions to duel terror and then take time to elevate their intellect are trying to do better by themselves and by their country.”

The group noted that advanced countries prioritize the education of ex-servicemen to facilitate their seamless reentry into society like the revolutionary GI Bill in America.

However, in Nigeria, not only are these soldiers not retired but still educating themselves on the job, they’re sponsoring themselves at a Nigerian army school only to be unfairly sabotaged before their graduation.

Ogebe regretted the recent development wherein the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration ‘added insult to injury’ by reportedly releasing over 100 terrorists from prison and sent them for “de-radicalization” training while simultaneously withdrawing soldiers, who helped capture them, from school.

“Gen. Buhari who has benefited his entire life from being funded and educated by the Nigerian government even in foreign military institutions is handing over a shameful legacy to soldiers of today than he himself received,” Ogebe added.

He, therefore, urged the government to comply with the request of the esteemed human rights lawyer, Falana, to restore the 366 affected soldiers back to their institutions of learning to continue their studies. Read more.

— 

©Copyright 2022 News Band 

(If you would like to receive CURRENT NEWS updates from News Band on WhatsApp, join here; for Telegram, join here. If the group is full, kindly send WhatsApp/Telegram message to +234 905 038 2526. You can also send eyewitness accounts/reports/articles to elstimmy@gmail.com; follow us on twitter @News Band; like our Facebook page: News Band.)

For Diaspora Digital Media Updates click on Whatsapp, or Telegram. For eyewitness accounts/ reports/ articles, write to: citizenreports@diasporadigitalmedia.com. Follow us on X (Fomerly Twitter) or Facebook