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Says Military will crush all anti-democratic elements
By Tobias Lengnan Dapam
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor has warned politicians against use of thugs to disrupt 2023 elections.
Irabor, who stated this yesterday while briefing journalists in Abuja, said the military will crush all anti democratic elements.
“All those seeking electoral offices in 2023 should work within the ambit of the law. They should not recruit thugs to disrupt the elections.
“Any attempt to disturb the peace enjoyed by Nigerians will be crushed by the military.
“We enjoin all to trade the path of peace and do what is right. We are all working to ensure a peaceful society that will be enjoyed by all.“
The CDS advised those interested in positions and appointments after elections to see themselves as men and women that conducted themselves peacefully.
“For anyone who is looking forward to be elected, he must do it within the ambit of the provisions of the law because we will not in any way stand aside and see those who perpetrate violence all because they are looking for political office or appointive offices.
“Nigeria remains nation that must live in peace, desire to live in peace, and Nigerians deserve to live in peace.
“And so, we will not allow criminals among those or if you like, thugs that might have made themselves available for anyone to use.
“We are working very closely with the police and we stand ready to give them all the support that is necessary, because going forward, Nigeria must be peaceful and that is what we are looking forward to,” he said.
He called on journalists and the public to continue to support the military and other security agencies in the quest to return peace to trouble spots in the country.
He urged the media to continue to educate Nigerians on the need to trust the military with actionable information in dealing with security challenges as issues of insecurity did not only rest with the military and other security agencies.
“Nigeria belongs to every one of us, and we have a duty to contribute in one way or the other in ensuring that criminals among us are exposed and dealt with.”
Speaking further, Irabor said availability of effective equipment for the troops in theatres of operations had been a major focus of the government.
He said the acquisition of fighting equipment was largely dependent on what was available in the market that had been assessed and adjudged to be effective, especially in dealing with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) attacks.
According to him, IEDs attacks have remained the greatest challenge, especially for the operations in the North East over the years.
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