Nigerian Army 81 Division Clarifies Incident of Accidental Firing

By Nokai Origin, Abuja

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The Headquarters, 81 Division Nigerian Army (NA), has debunked reports making the rounds on social media, alleging that a soldier of 35 Artillery Brigade terminated his life due to non payment of Ration Cash Allowance (RCA).

A statement by the Acting Deputy Director Army Public Relations, 81 Division, Lieutenant Colonel Olabisi Ayeni said having lost one of its soldiers, the authorities of the Division feel deeply concerned that some mischief makers under whatever guise would employ such sad occurrence to malign the image of the Division and the Nigerian Army in general.

The Division therefore clarified that the late soldier was deployed at the Brigade Standby Force on Monday 15 January 24 alongside his colleagues for daily cantonment duty and they were adequately fed in line with NA’s standard for troops on duty.

However, investigation into the immediate cause of the incident indicated that the deceased soldier reportedly handled his personal weapon negligently and misfired, which resulted to his death.

His colleagues who heard the sound of gunshot had rushed to the scene of the incident, only to find the soldier in the pool of his blood with gunshot wounds on the head.

Further investigation has since commenced to unravel the circumstances and possible remote cause of the unfortunate incident, while the remains of the soldier has been evacuated and deposited at the Federal Medical Centre Abeokuta.

The Division, through the Commander 35 Artillery Brigade, has informed the deceased family and also expressed heartfelt condolences and sympathy over the unfortunate incident.

The Division reiterated its commitment to providing necessary welfare required to boost the morale of troops under command in line with the Chief of Army Staff Command Philosophy.
It therefore emphasized that it will not under any guise take the welfare of its troops lightly as wrongly insinuated.

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