Allegations of unfair treatment, discrimination, favouritism, among others, rent the air at the weekend as stakeholders of Enugu State interfaced with the leadership of the Nigerian Army over apathy to military recruitment in the last couple of years.

The Guardian learnt that the state is ranked among others in the South East and South-South that have not met its recruitment quota in the past three years.

Of the 150 slots expected to be filled by the state each year, statistics show that it had not provided more than 75 with about 48 of the slots filled in the last exercise.

It was based on this development, which the army high command regarded as abnormal, that the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Farouk Yahaya, approved the recruitment of Enugu indigenes, which was facilitated by the state government.

Speaking during a tour of the three senatorial zones of the state by officials of the Nigerian Army, a traditional ruler, Igwe Chris Asogwa, lamented that he had, in the past, signed application forms for potential recruits from his community that never materialised.

Another monarch, Igwe Dan Ugwuanyi, urged the army command to enhance its medium of publicity, insisting that most people do not know when recruitments are carried out.

A retired military officer, His Royal Highness Jerome Okeke, stated that he would not encourage anybody to join the armed forces based on his experiences while in service.

“I was sacked and retired after attending an exam where I came third, which should have promoted me to the next level because I am Igbo. All those who attended that exam with me and passed were promoted. So, it is the discrimination being meted out to Ndigbo that is the problem. I can’t allow my children to join the army, because of my experiences. They should treat everybody equally,” he said.

Addressing journalists, representative of the Chief of Staff, Major General Ola Oyelade, stated: “Over the past few years, we have noticed that our brothers and sisters from some states, particularly in the South East and South South have not been meeting up with their quota for enlistment.

The department of administration, under the guidance of the Chief of Army Staff, said that this anomaly needs to be corrected, because the military is run nationally, and it is important every part of the country is represented in the army because it is our army. It is for this reason that the Chief of Army Staff has directed that we should go on sensitisation visits to states to solve the problem.”