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14 Army personnel to be court-martialled for murder, other cimes

By Kelvin Ebiri
16 June 2019   |   3:04 am
A Major, two Captains and 11 other Nigerian Army personnel are to be arraigned before a seven-member court martial for alleged murder and kidnapping.   The General Officer Commanding, 6 Division, Major General Jamil Sarham, stated this after inauguration of the general court martial in Port Harcourt, yesterday.   He said: “The offences for which…

[FILES] Major, two Captains and 11 other Nigerian Army personnel are to be arraigned before a seven-member court martial for alleged murder and kidnapping

A Major, two Captains and 11 other Nigerian Army personnel are to be arraigned before a seven-member court martial for alleged murder and kidnapping.
 
The General Officer Commanding, 6 Division, Major General Jamil Sarham, stated this after inauguration of the general court martial in Port Harcourt, yesterday.
 
He said: “The offences for which the accused persons are being tried range from murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, desertion, offences in relation to public and services property, disobedience to standing orders and conducts to the prejudice to service discipline, all punishable under the Armed Forces Act CAP A20 Law of the Federation of Nigeria 2004. 

“We have a total of 14 accused persons; three officers and 11 soldiers. Among them are one Major, two Captains, two Staff Sergeants and one Sergeant and others.”
 
He stated that the court martial remained one of the apparatus used by the Nigerian Armed Forces to discipline erring personnel.
 
Sarham explained that the Nigerian Army is a creation of the Nigerian Constitution to carry out specific tasks to support government’s effort in providing security for the Nigerian nation. 

He said unless such a body of professionals is disciplined, achieving victory in battle and other specified assignments would not be easy.
 
He cited Section 131 of the Armed Forces Act, which conferred on him the power to convene the General Court Martial and by so doing, to try the accused persons, who allegedly violated some codes guiding Nigerian Army professional conduct.

Sarham explained that the accused persons were thoroughly investigated to determine their innocence or culpability. He promised that none of them would be denied justice.

He said: “The establishment of court martial is predicated on the fact that the Armed Forces of Nigeria holds its personnel in high esteem, hence its resolve to ensure that a thorough investigation is conducted before any suspect can be put on trial…”

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