Mutiny: 27 soldiers get life jail

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AKURE — THE military court-martial trying the 28 soldiers for mutiny yesterday sentenced 27 of them to life imprisonment after being in detention for over nine months.

Delivering the judgment which lasted seven hours in Akure, President of the seven-member panel, Brigadier-General Ishaya Bauka however discharged and acquitted Private Bala Aliu for want of evidence by the prosecutor, Lt. Col Samson Nurseman.

Cross section of the 28 soldiers at the sitting of the court martial at the Owena Barracks, Akure, yesterday.

But in a swift reaction to the conviction, their lead counsel. Mr Femi Falana, described the judgment as “a charade that cannot stand.”

Falana said that by Monday, the soldiers would appeal the judgment after having submitted during the proceedings that the president of the court-martial was biased.

The seven members of the court-martial include Brig.-Gen ASB Ngorgi, Brig.-Gen U Chima, Brig.-Gen FS Owonibi, Group Capt ME Ahmed Col WOV Ijide and Col S Ado.

The judgment is coming barely four months after the same court-martial convicted four senior officers of the Nigerian Army, including a serving Commanding Officer of 72 Army Battalion, Markurdi, Col A.A Awotoye for conspiracy and stealing contrary to Armed Forces Act.

Sixteen witnesses were called during the trial by the prosecution to prove its case and evidences including video recording of the protest from where he identified some of the soldiers were tendered.

Apart from conspiracy and stealing, the army officers were also pronounced guilty of negligence of duty and failure to perform their statutory functions as senior officers. They were consequently sentenced to various punishments in accordance with the armed forces regulations.

Others officers convicted by the Brig.-Gen Bauka-led court-martial trying the 28 soldiers who protested the delay in payment of foreign mission allowances were Lt Col Paul Baba, Major AK Shonva and Major C H Chajoku and Sergeant Yahaya Umar.

All the five accused officers were serving with the finance offices at the Defence Headquarters, Abuja and were responsible for the payment of entitlements to the soldiers who went to Liberia for peace keeping mission. They were vicariously liable for the protest of the soldiers on April last year.

The soldiers convicted by the Court Martial were: Sergeant Akwara Oliver, Corporal Princewell Onwunare, Corporal Paul Maikudi, Corporal Abass Salisu, Lance Corporal Okani Pope, Lance Corporal Lawal Abubakar, Lance Corporal Pascal Stephen, Lance Corporal John Felix, Lance Corporal Yomi Ibukun, Lance Corporal Loveday Mmapie, Lance Corporal Umar Abdulkadir, Lance Corporal Musa Salisu, and Lance Corporal Innoncent Egbuna.

Others are Lance Corporal Wanogho Shedrack, Lance Corporal Bello Zaharaeed, Private Chukwuda Onwukanjo, Private Jonathan Komo, Private Samuel Ogbe, Private Nkawor Esther, Private Mary Idoko, Private Olanihun Yetunde, Private Anthony Jonathan, Private Salisu Ibrahim, Private Aderaloye Olalekan, Private Kabiru Mohammed and Private Anukan Kelechi.

According to Brigadier Bauka, the convicted persons were charged under Section 52 sub-sections 2 of the Armed Forces Act 2004. He however said that the sentences were subject to confirmation by the appropriate authorities.

Bauka who after listening to the plea of the counsel to the convicted persons agreed that after going through their records of service it was discovered that they “have maintained good record, no record of disciplinary cases and that they are first offenders.

“We have also considered the plea that they have being in detention for nine months and that they are the bread winners of their families and also that the Nigerian Army had expended so much on them but the punishment for mutiny is life imprisonment and we cannot give them lesser sentence.

“This court has therefore found you guilty of the one count charge of mutiny and has therefore sentenced the 27 soldiers to life imprisonment.”

Bauka pointed out that the soldiers action was a “deliberately design to undermine the Nigerian Army. They failed to follow due process in making their grievances known; they failed to follow the military tradition of seeking redress and therefore have put the Nigerian Army in serious and imminent danger.

“Security was threatened by their unprofessional action; their action was a serious threat to the command structure of the Military.”

According to Bauka, the soldiers instead of listening to the Commanding Officer, Lt Col Godwin Umelo, after it was discovered that there were shortfall in their allowances, ignored him and took to the streets, chanted war songs and made bonfires, disrupted traffic for hours and engaged in an unprofessional acts.

He said that witnesses gave a graphic picture of how the soldiers disobeyed the Commanding Officer and went on the rampage in the streets of Akure.

“You all conducted yourselves in a riotous manner unbecoming of soldiers. And you know that military discipline requires soldiers to follow instruction and laid down procedures. Your action negated discipline in the Nigerian Army.

“We found out that your action strike at the foundation of discipline in the Nigerian Army and have put the Army in imminent danger.”

The solders that went to Liberia under United Nation in Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) were the most affected as they were being owed more than six months salary arrears. They were expected to be paid $1,228 per month.