The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, has stated that the attackers responsible for recent violence in Benue State are not Nigerians.
Oluyede stated this on Saturday while declaring open the Nigerian Army Civil-Military Cooperation quarterly media chat, holding in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
The theme of the ongoing event is: Military- media collaboration: Panacea for enhanced national security and development.
Represented by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 2 Division Nigerian Army, Ibadan, Major General Obinna Onubogu, Oluyede said the attackers differ significantly in a behaviour that is ‘utterly despicable.’
He emphasised that the activities of the armed groups, who have carried out bloodletting and rendered several families homeless, do not reflect the country’s national identity and value system.
“We are mindful that some of these people may be foreign elements. The behaviour we are seeing is utterly despicable, the way they go about their work. It does not reflect any kind of national identity or value system,” the Chief of Army Staff said.
While condemning the attack, Oluyede said that the military was committed to ending the spate of violence in the nation’s territorial integrity from both external and internal aggressors.
According to him, the military was already strategising with the move to smoke out the attackers from their hidden places and make them face the consequences of their actions.
