Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno had on Monday alleged that security personnel including soldiers were collecting money from travelers on major roads in the state to the detriment of their duties.
The Defence Headquarters has promised to investigate the allegation that troops of Operation Lafiya Dole were involved in extortion at check points on major roads in Borno.
The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. John Enenche, in a statement on Tuesday, said the Armed Forces of Nigeria have internal mechanisms to check erring personnel and sanction them appropriately.
Enenche said that reported cases of extortion from the public had always been investigated and given the desired attention.
He, however, faulted what he described as “the media or open air accusation” tagging gallant Nigerian Army personnel as extortionists in check points in Borno.
According to him, all personnel of the Armed Forces are patriotic and focused on their call of duty.
“The High Command of the Nigerian Military hereby re-states the commitment of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and other Security Agencies to tackling and ending terrorism in the North East,” he said.
Ojelabi, the publisher of Freelanews, is an award winning and professionally trained mass communicator and a recipient of the D9112 Superstar Icon Award, who writes ruthlessly about pop culture, religion, politics and entertainment.
