…Says troops are on red alert
Ahead of the General Elections, the Military High Command yesterday warned that the Nigerian Armed Forces, in collaboration with other security forces in the country, would deal decisively with any act inimical to the successful conduct of the coming polls.
Fielding questions during the bi-weekly briefing of Defence Correspondents in Abuja, on the troop activities and operational successes being recorded in the various operational theatres within the six geo-political zones of the country in the past two weeks, Director, Directorate of Defence Media Operations, Major-Gen. Musa Ɗanmadami, assured that the military, as an institution, would remain apolitical, but would deal ruthlessly with any act that would be inimical to the smooth conduct of the polls nationwide.
He stated that in the past two weeks, both kinetic and non-kinetic operations were conducted in the various theatres of operations, with significant results recorded, and that there was no cause for concern over the peaceful conduct of the polls in any part of the country.
According to Ɗanmadami, “The Armed Forces of Nigeria is on stand by for the general elections. There is no cause for concern; the CDS has stated this on several occasions. We will remain apolitical, but will deal divisively with any unwanted behaviour. The rules of engagement are there; the Code of Conducts are being distributed to the troops.
“The Nigeria Police Force is the lead Agency in the conduct of Elections; but the Military and other sister security agencies will play supportive roles, and we are ready for the supportive roles; so, there is no cause for concern.
“As we speak now, we are conducting various operations in the perceived volatile South-East zone to restore normalcy in the area, as we did in the past, after which peaceful elections were held. The coming elections will also hold in the area, and so also in all the parts of the country”.
He said that during the period under review, the troops neutralised scores of the members of the Boko Haram and the ISWAP fighters, while a good number of the bandits and members of their families surrendered to the troops.
