Some soldiers had told SaharaReporters that about 50 personnel daily “move from farm to farm to gather dried corn leaves for the commander, Major General Mohammed Aminu Abdullahi’s cow”.
The Nigerian Army has explained why soldiers serving at the training depot in Zaria, Kaduna State are asked to go into the bush to look for dried corn leaves for cattle.
Some soldiers had told SaharaReporters that about 50 personnel daily “move from farm to farm to gather dried corn leaves for the commander, Major General Mohammed Aminu Abdullahi’s cow”.
“Major-General MA Abdullahi is the Commandant of the Nigerian Army depot. He prefers his cows to soldiers, up to the point that he'll use soldiers to go to the bush to gather food for his cows.
“For almost a month now, these soldiers have been suffering every day just to go and bring food for his cows. You'd think they're prisoners when you see them; almost 50 soldiers every day going to the bush to get grass for his cows,” a soldier had told SaharaReporters.
“Even at that, the welfare of soldiers here is extremely poor. Since he took over as the commandant, the feeding has been nothing to write home about.”
Regarding the number of cows owned by the commandant, one of the aggrieved soldiers said, “I can't really say how many cows he has, but they're up to 60, if not more.
“He has a cow farm here in the depot. When he was posted here, he brought the cows along. There is a steady power supply and water for the cows even if there's none in the barracks because he had already installed solar panels for them.”
“He doesn't have an interest in the training of recruits.
“Even when recruits are going for exercises, you will see him with his cattle; he doesn't want to know if the recruits are properly trained or not. But he can't go to bed without checking on the cows,” another soldier had added.
When SaharaReporters called Major General MA Abdullahi for comments and clarifications, he hung up the moment he heard the name of the newspaper.
Reacting, Kele Babale, Assistant Director of Army Public Relations in a statement said Nigeria’s current economic challenges and surge in commodity prices necessitated the rearing of cattle to sustain the nutritional needs of recruits.
He said, “At present, the institution is conducting training for recruits, however, the prevailing economic challenges and surge in commodity prices have necessitated the stocking of food supplies and livestock to sustain the nutritional needs of the recruits.
“It is imperative to emphasize that Depot NA not only recognizes the importance of maintaining the standard of nutrition for our recruits but also understands the positive impact on their performance and overall morale during training.
“Accordingly, the provision of food and care for the livestock is meticulously managed to ensure a balanced diet for our recruits, while also extending similar considerations to our trainers through the Barracks Investment and Initiative program. This initiative facilitates affordable livestock and irrigation farming within designated areas of the cantonment to benefit our personnel.”