The Nigerian Army has instituted investigations into the incident where a soldier shot his colleagues to death and thereafter killed himself at Forward Operations Base (FOB) Rabbah, Sokoto State.
The incident, described as “sad and rare,” occured in the evening of Sunday, March 5, 2023 at the FOB, where troops were deployed for internal security operations.
The Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, who released a statement on Monday, March 6, said that the circumstances that led to the incident could not be immediately ascertained, as the soldier who killed his colleagues also shot himself immediately, terminating his own life.
The Army spokesman stated that the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 8 Division of the Nigerian Army, who also doubles as the Commander, Joint Task Force, Northwest Operation, Hadarin Daji, Major General Godwin Mutkut, and other senior officers visited the location where he commiserated with troops for losing their colleagues in such an unfortunate situation.
The GOC urged the troops to be their brother’s keepers and report any anomaly observed among their colleagues, in order to forestall such incidents.
He also encouraged them to remain calm and committed in the discharge of their duties.
“The authorities of the Nigerian Army are deeply concerned about this unusual and ugly development, and have therefore instituted a Board of Inquiry (BOI) to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident.
“It is envisaged that the findings of the BOI will help forestall such ugly and bizarre occurrence in the future,” Nwachukwu said.
