The Nigeria Army has dismissed claims by Simon Ekpa, factional leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, in a viral video, alleging that soldiers are carrying out mass killing of innocent Igbos and dumping their bodies in the river.
The Army said Ekpa’s claims contained some unimaginable and not well couched falsehood targeted at whipping-up negative sentiments against troops and inciting anarchy in the South-East region
Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, Director, Army Public Relations, in a statement said: “Contrary to the falsehood being spread from the devious propaganda machinery of the desperate and self-serving terrorists’ leader, the Nigerian Army wishes to state that it has conducted a comprehensive investigation on the allegations made by devious infamous leader and his associates.
“The troops in the video footage are not personnel of the Nigerian Army as the insignia visible on their berets clearly identifies them as personnel of the Nigerian Navy, who were engaged in a routine test firing of a weapon system mounted on a vehicle and in order to ensure the safety of other road users and commuters, the troops took precautionary measures by halting vehicular movement along the road, until the test firing was safely concluded.
“Observers were also kept at a safe distance, maintaining transparency and prioritizing the safety of all involved”.
Onyema said preliminary findings also indicated that the occurrence took place in the South-West region of the country and not the South-East as portrayed by the alarmist propagandists.
“It was observed that there was no evidence to support the assertion that individuals were being shot at in the river, nor have there been any report from local communities regarding the discovery of corpses in the area,” the statement further added.
The statement enjoined the public to disregard the “unfounded claims and irredeemable falsehood” being propagated by Ekpa and his associates.
Share your story or advertise with us: Whatsapp: +2347068606071 Email: info@newspotng.com
