The Defence Headquarters yesterday responded to allegations made by Amnesty International, saying it is a deliberate attempt to frustrate efforts at restoring peace and security in the country.
In a statement signed by the acting Director of Information, Brigadier General John Agim, the Defence Headquarters said the report released by Amnesty International (AI) on February 22, 2018, alleging human rights violation by the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN), is a gross disservice to the nation’s high security command.
He accused the AI of trying to weaken the efforts of the AFN, at ensuring peace and security in the country.
The statement reads in part, “it has been observed that AI has made it a routine duty to continue generating tension among citizens by releasing unconfirmed reports, unsubstantiated claims and figures relating to military counter-insurgency operations and wanton killings by unknown groups or persons”.
He said that the current report could have been ill-conceived to frustrate the on-going US-Nigerian anti-terrorism cooperation.
His words, “it could then be posited that the aim of AI in Nigeria is to cripple the country’s security apparatus through cheap blackmail in order to hold back necessary collaboration.
“The AFN has both constitutional and moral responsibility to protect Nigerian citizens and cannot suddenly engage in mass murder as portrayed by AI. The AI reports are at variance with and do not reconcile the information we are collecting from the field on daily basis making these sources suspect”.
Agim noted that the AI allegations of human rights violations and extra judicial killing of civilians by the AFN have followed a specific trend for some time now, adding that the organization’s allegations made against the AFN since 2011 to date are largely unsubstantiated.
