The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Kenneth Minimah, has said he is a war time chief whose major focus is to put an end to the menace of Boko Haram.
Minimah, who spoke in Lagos at the weekend while addressing troops at Ojo, Topo and Ibereko Barracks, said the welfare of troops deployed in various operations have remained top priority.
He said aside paying operational allowances of troops upfront, the army has ensured that soldiers wounded in battle get the best medical treatment either at army hospitals or abroad as the case may be.
“As an infantry General, all I know is to plan for and fight war. And in doing this, we have made sure that our troops are taken care of.
“As I talk to you, troops operational allowance for the month of August are being paid and that is how it has always been.
“It is only the Nigerian Army that pays operational allowances upfront. We paid that of July in June, and we have also made efforts to upgrade medical facilities at the 7 Division to carter for soldiers wounded-in-action.
“For those whose cases cannot be handled at the 7 Division, we took them to 45 Reference Hospital, Kaduna.
“Seven casualties, whose situation could not be handled back home are currently being treated in India and Germany. And we will continue to do our best within our resources to take care of troops,” he said.
Minimah went on: “When I became the Chief of Army Staff, there was a proposal on my table about the increase in school fees for all army schools across the country. But I looked at it and considered that soldiers would be stressed with this increment and so I dropped the idea.”
Lt-Gen. Minimah cautioned officers and men of the army against the use of the social media to spread falsehood, particularly as regards the prosecution of the war against terrorists, as well as exposing the strength and perceived weaknesses of the service.
He said: “One trend that is also dangerous to the service we all cherish is the misuse of the social media. I urge you to be careful of social media. Those of you that like to use facebook, twitter, and other social media to report the army as if you are not in the army. What you do not know is that you have been undoing the systems that you are part of.
“You can tweet on social issues. Do not tweet about our locations, equipment, weapons and ammunition. What has that got to do with you. I hope you have not come to undo the system before you enlist. I urge you to desist from reporting the army.”
The Nation
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