Nigerian Army Condemns ‘Campaign of Calumny’ Against Buratai

• Absolves him of fraud, corruption allegations

By Senator Iroegbu

The Nigerian Army has condemned what it referred as a campaign of calumny by some vested interests against the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, over alleged corruption and fraudulent deals.

The Director of Army Public Relations (DAPR), Col. Sani Abubakar, in a statement on Saturday, described the reports by some online media as untrue and a calculated attempt to tarnish the image of the Army Chief.

Usman drew the attention of the members of the public to the fact that the information being peddled against Buratai is fraught with half truths and outright lies, carefully crafted in a way to paint the COAS in bade shade.

He stated: “The attention of the Nigerian Army has been drawn to another round of campaign of calumny against the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusufu Buratai and his family by some unscrupulous elements as contained in Sahara Reporters story titled “Revealed: Buhari’s Chief Of Army Staff, General Buratai, Wives Own Dubai Property”, alleging that Nigeria’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Tukur Buratai, and his two wives are joint owners of a Dubai property that was paid for in one transaction posted on the website, this evening.

“It is important to know that these baseless allegations were not new. In March this year, some groups of individuals under the aegis of ‘Concerned Citizens’, tried same smear campaign to their disappoinment, it could not fly, because it is not true.”

He recalled that early last week, “there was similar campaign of calumny by yet another online news medium, The Cable, in which among other things, it alleged that wounded in action Nigerian Army personnel were abandoned by the Army, government and the nation which is not true”.

Therefore, he said, the latest round of smear campaign by Sahara Reporters is one of the series of campaigns of calumny by these faceless individuals to malign the Chief of Army Staff and the Nigerian Army.

“Yet, typical of blackmailers and mischief makers despite failures, they did not give up, hence they now found a willing accomplice reputed for muckraking like the Sahara Reporters. The online news medium this evening uploaded another campaign of calumny allegedly based on a petition by obviously fake and non-existent group it described as ‘Concerned Soldiers and Officers From the North East”, he stressed.

Further details later