SaharaReporters broke the news on Tuesday that an army officer at Ojo cantonment, Lagos identified as Boyi ThankGod killed himself.
The Nigerian Army has denied the report that a soldier attached to the 35 Artillery Brigade in Abeokuta, Ogun state, committed suicide on Armed Forces Remembrance Day, saying he accidentally shot himself dead.
SaharaReporters broke the news on Tuesday that an army officer at Ojo cantonment, Lagos identified as Boyi ThankGod killed himself.
The soldier was said to have suddenly cocked his rifle and shot himself in the head.
The incident happened on Monday; a colleague of the deceased told SaharaReporters.
He was said to have complained about his unpaid allowances and showed signs of depression before he eventually took his life.
However, Olabisi Ayeni, acting deputy director of army public relations, 81 division, in a statement issued on Wednesday, denied reports that the soldier committed suicide over unpaid allowances.
Olabisi who said the soldiers were adequately fed in line with NA’s standard for troops on duties noted that an investigation into the immediate cause of the incident indicated that the deceased soldier reportedly handled his personal weapon negligently and misfired, which resulted in his death.
He explained that further investigation had commenced to “unravel the circumstances and possible remote” cause of the incident.
He said, “The attention of Headquarters 81 Division Nigerian Army (NA) has been drawn to insinuations 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).
“Having lost one of its soldiers, the authorities of the Division feel deeply concerned that some mischief makers under whatever guise would employ such a sad occurrence to malign the image of the Division and the NA in general.
“Nevertheless, for the sake of posterity, it needs to be mentioned 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 duties.
“However, an investigation into the immediate cause of the incident indicated that the deceased soldier reportedly handled his personal weapon negligently and misfired, which resulted in 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.”
He said the remains of the soldier had been evacuated and deposited at the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, adding that the family of the deceased had been informed of the “unfortunate” incident. Adding that the division is committed to providing the necessary welfare required to boost the morale of troops under its command.
“Therefore, the Division will not under any guise take the welfare of its troops lightly as wrongly insinuated,” the statement added.