Some soldiers of the Nigerian Army have decried the activities of the Commanding Officer of 81 Division Task Force Battalion at Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State, Lt Col SJ Ajiya, which have caused several deaths of their colleagues.

Some of the soldiers who spoke to SaharaReporters on the condition of anonymity, stated that since Ajiya became their Commander, they have recorded several unwarranted deaths of soldiers because of his negligence.

According to the sources, few weeks ago, seven soldiers were killed in one day because of Ajiya’s negligence and refusal to carry the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle for patrol. “Two are still in critical condition as we speak,” one of the soldiers revealed. 

Recounting some alleged unprofessional conducts of the commander, the soldiers alleged that “he sends soldiers on useless errands to Koibe” a development that led to one soldier “Pte Salako entering the mines and he died”. “In fact, for him to burry that soldier becomes a problem,” the aggrieved soldier narrated, adding that “the commander did not want to burry him,” despite the fact that he was the one who sent him to his death.

Narrating further, the soldiers lamented the death of Warrant Officer Charles Nwogu 93NA, the unit Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) that has few years to go on retirement and Pte Ugwu Daniel with so many others seriously injured because, Lt Col SJ Ajiya refused to fix the unit vehicles, which led to a fatal accident when they went to buy fuel.

“The CO has refused to fix the unit vehicles to the extent that our two trucks are down. As a result, he started to use Hilux to carry fuel from town and some soldiers had an accident. Unfortunately, we lost WO Charles Nwogu 93NA the unit RSM that has few years to go on retirement and Pte Ugwu Daniel. Some others with injuries were rushed to the teaching hospital in Maiduguri.

“Since he became our Commander, bad things have been happening in our unit. 

“This CO (Commanding officer) has no value for soldiers’ lives. He is always risking our lives and he talks to everybody anyhow. Even the officers he insults them in front of soldiers,” the soldiers lamented, while calling for help.

SaharaReporters’ efforts to get the reaction of the Nigerian Army authorities were unsuccessful as the spokesman, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu could not be reached on telephone as of the time of filing this report.

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