The accused officer was identified as Lieutenant Agor of the 17 FER Engineer unit of the Nigerian Army.
Some soldiers at the Maimalari Army Barracks in Maiduguri, Borno State, have kicked against the alleged humiliation and maltreatment of their colleague identified as Lance Corporal Ismaila Idris by a newly commissioned officer.
The accused officer was identified as Lieutenant Agor of the 17 FER Engineer unit of the Nigerian Army.
The aggrieved soldiers lamented what they termed an “unfair treatment” meted out on Idris by Agor.
The Lieutenant was said to have slapped and assaulted the Lance Corporal last week.
Some of the soldiers claimed they were being treated like slaves by commissioned officers who met them in service.
“Why would an officer slap a soldier without any offence that warranted him to do so? Why are they treating non-commissioned officers like slave? The Lance Corporal had been in service for the past six years while the officer who slapped joined the army less than two years ago,” a soldier told SaharaReporters.
Narrating what transpired, another soldier said, “What happened was that this soldier was the last to get to the parade ground last week, so he was locked up for three days in the guard room without trial by the commanding officer. His commanding officer is Lieutenant Colonel JA Waja.
“However, while in the guard room, Lieutenant Agor went to meet him and started slapping him like a baby without doing him anything. He didn’t disobey any other, so why beating him? Why assaulting someone who didn’t commit any offense? Does he even have rights to beat his colleague?
“So after Idris left the guard room, he meet the unit RSM and explained what happened to him but the RSM didn't take it serious nor make any effort to resolve the issue within his level. The soldier was very sad, he then wrote to the CO of the 17 Field Regiment Engineering unit but his letter was denied.”
“Yes, it’s true that one of our colleagues was assaulted by a commissioned officer, that’s part of what we non-commissioned soldiers are facing. We’re calling on the GOC to please use his good office to address this ill treatment by this officer who think we are slaves to him,” another soldier added.
“Lt Agor slapped him over five times just like that, what did he do? Nothing, it's well known to every army personnel, you don't have any right to slap any service personnel under the Armed Forces act.”