- The Senate has intervened on the issue of a soldier alleged to have connived with Boko Haram by the Nigerian army
- The Senate asked the army to pay the soldier N25.3 million for wrong allegation as ordered by the court
- It also asked the army to reinstate and promote 13 officers it wrongfully dismissed
The Senate on Tuesday, January 23, asked the Nigerian army to pay N25.3 million as damages to a retired major, Ali Abdullahi, as ordered by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court.
The resolution of the Senate followed the recommendation by the committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Premium Times reports.
NAIJ.com gathered that the petition was submitted in February 2017 by the senator representing Kogi Central, Ahmed Ogembe.
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Sam Anyanwu, Imo-PDP, who presented the report, said the army was wrong to tag the officer a terrorist.
Anyanwu said: “It is unfortunate that this time in the life of the nation, that the military could still work against one of its own, claiming that a retired major was a Boko Haram just because he refused to accept the overtures of another political party other than his own.
“From submissions and other testimonies received from both parties, the Nigerian Army was aware that there was a judgement which mandates them to pay to the tune of N25.3 million and yet, it deliberately refused to pay.”
He added that the Nigerian army could not explain why it refused to obey the court ruling since 2013, claiming that it was going to appeal the case.
The Senate adopted the committee recommendation that Nigerian Army “immediately arrange and pay Major Abdullahi Ali a judgement sum of N25.3 million awarded by FCT High Court as compensation for illegal detention and inhuman treatment meted out to him in 2012 by the Nigerian army.”
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Likewise, the Senate asked the Nigerian army to reinstate, promote and retire 13 officers who were dismissed wrongfully.
Anyanwu said the Nigerian army did not have any explanation for the ‘unjust dismissal.’
“The Nigerian army could not explain the reasons for the retirement of the 13 officers but claimed that their retirement was based on a 2007 terms and conditions of the Nigerian Army which they could not even make available to the committee.
“The terms and conditions under which the petitioners were commissioned were those contained in the 1984 terms and conditions of service which did not contain the 40 years age limit clause they effected in retiring them,” he said.
The Senate asked that the petitioner, Solomon Damina, and 12 others be immediately reinstated, promoted to the rank of captain and be retired with effect from 2nd January 2008 with all their entitlements full paid to them.
NAIJ.com previously reported that some dismissed soldiers dragged the Nigerian army to ECOWAS court over alleged violation of their human rights.
The soldiers - 38 of them - were said to have been unjustly dismissed by the Nigerian army through some of its top defence officers.
The soldiers in a fresh suit accused the federal government of acting through the army's defence.
The soldiers in their suit accused the army council of approving the punishment meted to the soldiers without factual legal or constitutional basis.
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Source: Naija.ng
ROSY CREST
Wednesday, 24 January 2018