A military court (under the aegis of the Nigerian Army) sitting in Abuja has convicted former theatre commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Olusegun Adeniyi, and also demoted the soldier by at least three years.
Recall that Adeniyi, a major-general, made news headlines in March after a video of him complaining about the lack of weapons for troops fighting Boko Haram insurgents went viral.
He was consequently ousted as commander of Operation Lafiya Dole and transferred to the Nigerian Army Resource Centre in Abuja.
Eko Hot Blog gathered that he was later moved to the army headquarters, still in Abuja, where he was made to face a court martial.
A court martial is a legal proceeding for military officers, similar to a civilian court trial.
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The Nigerian Army however, claimed Adeniyi’s redeployment is a routine exercise geared towards reinvigorating the system.
Ruling on the case on Monday, the military tribunal found Adeniyi guilty of violating military social media guidelines and directed that the culpable soldier be demoted by at least three years.
Tokunbo Obanla, Adeniyi’s military aide, who was prosecuted alongside the general, was also found guilty and sentenced to 28 days in jail with hard labour.
Obanla, whom Adeniyi said was in possession of his phone at the time of the incident, reportedly admitted to posting the video on social media in error.
Both convictions are subject to confirmation by the military board before it can be implemented.
Adeniyi’s lawyers said they would appeal the tribunal judgement before higher military authorities.
In a similar development, the Nigerian Army had earlier this year detained an officer, Lance Corporal Idakpini Martins for making a video and circulating it via digital media.
In the viral video, Idakpini lodged a similar complaint, blaming Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai for not supplying the soldiers enough ammunition to fight the Boko Haram insurgents.
The Lance Corporal was consequently detained and denied access to legal representation, despite court orders.
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