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Under Buhari, opposition governor admits Army is fair at elections, doing well against terrorism, as Makinde hosts Buratai in Ibadan
By BASHIR ADEFAKA
Governor Makinde said: “I could not have been the Governor of Oyo State if not that the Nigerian Army stood its ground and insisted on impartiality during the elections. I must, therefore commend the Nigerian Army for its impartiality and professionalism (September 13, 2020). This morning, the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai, paid us a courtesy visit at the Government House Lodge, Agodi, Ibadan. I commended him for the work the Nigerian Army has been doing fighting against insurgency and banditry in Northern Nigeria. (September 14, 2020.”
On Sunday September 13, 2020 the Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde, stripped himself of all the barriers and restrictions of opposition politics and decided to call a spade a spade and nothing but that. That was when he threw up a gala night for the Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai, at the Government House Ibadan, in the state capital raining all praises on the military chief for ensuring transparent fairness in election security during the 2019 general elections.
He said said his decision to throw that appreciative party was informed by the fact that without the General’s administration of the Army which ensured that level of constituency, he would not have become governor of Oyo State particularly as an opposition Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate under controlling and governing All Progressives Congress-led government.
In his words, Governor Makinde said: “I could not have been the Governor of Oyo State if not that the Nigerian Army stood its ground and insisted on impartiality during the elections. I must, therefore commend the Nigerian Army for its impartiality and professionalism.”
On the following day of Monday September 14 the governor, after receiving the Buratai in audience at the Governor’s Office Ibadan, took to his Twitter handle and said: “This morning, the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai, paid us a courtesy visit at the Government House Lodge, Agodi, Ibadan. I commended him for the work the Nigerian Army has been doing fighting against insurgency and banditry in Northern Nigeria.”
Makinde, on a final note by this comments, became the first South West opposition governor in recent times (there were the Ayo Fayose and Olusegun Mimiko as opposition governors), who would bluntly speak against expectation of his political camp saying the truth as it is that Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government has been truly fair to all.
“So, we sincerely want to say thank you for that and we do hope that it would be kept that way,” he said.
He further noted that the Nigerian Army and the government as well as the people of the state maintain cordial relationship.
Makinde said: “We want to use this opportunity to also appreciate the existing cordial relationship and we intend to keep it that way.
“We acknowledged the challenges going on right now in our country; in the middle of a pandemic and economic meltdown, we are running a mono economy.
“The price of the mono product in the international market has gone down considerably so we are all feeling that pitch.
“And then; roll it with all the issues going on in the Northeast – Boko Haram, Northwest – Banditry, I wonder how challenging the environment can be.
“But in the middle of those challenges, I’m glad to note that the Nigerian Army has applied itself very well professionally and also managing those challenges.
“So; I want to say kudos to yourself, the officers and men of the Nigerian Army,” he said.
Makinde pleged continuing government support to the Army, adding that the state government would support families of officers and men of the Army 2 Division, Ibadan, deployed to various operations in the country.
“It is on this basis; we have been relating with the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2 Division and his team. Whatever we can to make life a little better for the families of our servicemen, we will continue to do it,” the governor added.
Also speaking, Buratai said he and his entourage were on a working visit to the Army 2 Division Ibadan.
He added that he would also visit Kuta and other communities in Osun State, to commission projects executed in line with the civil-military cooporation of the Nigerian Army.
The military top bras reiterated commitment of the Nigerian Army to remain impartial in the discharge of its constitutional responsibility.
General Buratai commended the governor for his administration’s support to the 2 Division Nigerian Army, Ibadan and promised to continue cordial relationship with Oyo State.
Buratai was accompanied in the visit by Lt.-Gen. Lamidi Adeosun, Chief of Policy and Plans, Maj.-Gen. Anthony Omozojie, GOC 2 Division, Ibadan and Maj.-Gen. JS Malu, Commander, Engineering Corps.
The DEFENDER reports that under the past PDP-led administration of Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, the Nigerian Army under Kenneth Minimah deployed its troops to arrest then serving governor of Rivers State, Rt. Honourable Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, being an opposition APC governor, at Odudu village on his way from Akure Airport to attend Kayode Fayemi’s APC flag-off campaign in Ado-Ekiti in 2014.
To ring this to a wider spread, a former spokesperson to National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Emmanuel Kolawole wrote from Akure to make the world know how well the military under Muhammadu Buhari’s Presidency and leadership of Buratai is doing and this he put together in a piece he titled, “Truthful words that make one proud of our Military”.
Kolawole said, “The role of the Nigerian Military in the preservation of democracy in Nigeria cannot be overemphasized. This much has been stated in numerous forums due to her exploits in fulfilment of its constitutional mandate of preserving the territorial integrity of the country as well as its invaluable interventions in internal security operations across the country. The exploits of the Nigerian Military in the preservation of democracy in Nigeria dates back years, and in recent times it has become pronounced hence this piece.
Taking the past five years as a case study, one would indeed be confronted with exploits that speak volume of a military that has stood in defence of democracy in Nigeria. The case of Oyo State indeed suffices where the Governor of the State, Seyi Makinde paid glowing tribute to the Nigerian Army for maintaining an impartial stance during the gubernatorial elections in the state,” Kolawole said.
Kolawole quoted Governor Makinde’s from his own words: “I could not have been the Governor of Oyo State if not that the Nigerian Army stood its ground and insisted on impartiality during the elections. I must, therefore commend the Nigerian Army for its impartiality and professionalism.”
He then moved on by impressing that, “These are indeed strong words to use in describing the Nigerian Army in its efforts towards the sustenance of our nascent democracy in Nigeria. And why Nigerians from all walks of life must see it as a national concern to support the operations of the Nigerian Army towards ensuring that the activities of terrorist and other militant groups do not thrive in any part of the country.
“I know for sure that there has been an orchestrated campaign by some forces against the peace and unity of the country against the Nigerian Army. They have made wild allegations and attempted to malign its leadership led by Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai for no justifiable reason and forgetting the fact that indeed this is a different epoch in the life of the modern-day Nigerian Army.
“They have also attempted to drag the Nigerian Army into the murky waters of politics by accusing it of taking sides in the discharge of its duties. But what the majority of Nigerians do not know is that the Nigerian Army of today is indeed a professional force that is committed to protecting our nascent democracy rather than get involved in politics.
“I know for a certain that the coming of Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai as the Chief of Army Staff indeed changed the operational effectiveness and focus of the Nigerian Army. This much can be seen in the various innovations that he has introduced in ensuring that the Nigerian Army stays true to its constitutional mandate in the country.
“Only recently, the Governor of Borno state, Babagana Zulum inaugurated the Tukur Buratai Institute for War and Peace as part of the concerted efforts to overcome the challenges of insurgency in the Northeast. The Governor stated that “the army is a reliable partner in progress and the state government shall work with the institute to design a template and programmes for peacebuilding, reconstruction and development of the communities.”
“This is just an example of the commitment of the Nigerian Army in the entrenchment of democracy in Nigeria, and this much has been brought to the fore with the leadership strides of the Chief of Army Staff. Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai since he assumed leadership in 2015.
“I recall some time in 2017, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai was conferred the Brazilian military order of merit award, which is the highest military honour in the country awarded to military officers, who had distinguished themselves in various military endeavours. The award was in recognition of Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai’s exemplary and world’s recognized leadership qualities and the Nigerian Army’s effort in the fight against terrorism and insurgency.
“This is just one out of the numerous awards that have come the way of the Chief of Army Staff since he assumed leadership of the Nigerian Army. I think at this point I must state that the Nigerian Army of today is indeed a force to reckon with and a case study in counter-insurgency operations.
“The Nigerian Army has indeed proved its mettle in ways too numerous to mention. And one of such ways was in the successful conduct of the 2019 general elections. Having observed the cycle of violence in our past electioneering processes, the Nigerian Army thus deemed it necessary to adopt a proactive and responsive posture that would allow a better response to early signs of insecurity before they could escalate into a major security challenge. It is in this light that it launched Operation Safe Conduct and also the establishment of a situation room for real-time monitoring of events across the country during the elections period.
“This proactive step indeed paid off with the successful conduct of the 2019 general elections in the country, especially in post-election violence that has characterized previous elections in Nigeria. This is indeed commendable and portrayed the Nigerian Army as an organization that is indeed apolitical and one whose loyalty is to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and not individuals, groups or political parties.
“In all of these, one thing stands out, which is the fact that the Nigerian Army has proven to be a worthy partner in progress in the democratic experiment in Nigeria that all Nigerians should be proud of. Regardless of what some despicable elements want the members of the unsuspecting general public to believe, the Nigerian Army is indeed a professional force dedicated to ensuring that the unity of Nigerian remains sacrosanct,” Emmanuel Kolawole concluded.
