Rights Group Gives Reasons Why South-east Youths are  Not Enlisting in the Military

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) has given reasons that the youths of the South-East region are reluctant to enroll in the Nigerian military.

The group, in a statement jointly signed by its principal officers, led by its Board of Trustees (BOT) Chairman, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, attributed these to “major atrocity policies and conduct”.

According to the army, the region accounted for only 123 enlistments out of 38,000 recruitment slots nationwide. It recently decried the poor figures.

But Intersociety in the statement raised fresh concerns over what it described as reasons for the low enlistment, including forced disappearance of personnel, claims of unequal treatment of insurgents in different parts of the country, and fears of renewed military crackdowns during national protests.

 The group said: “These alleged actions have significantly eroded trust in the armed forces and contributed to declining enlistment of youths from the Southeast into the military, police, and intelligence services.

“This is the consequence of systematic structural, physical, and cultural violence against citizens of the Southeast since July 2015.

“Repeated complaints and investigative reports had been ignored by successive administrations, while critics and authors of such reports were allegedly subjected to intimidation, denial, and public discrediting.”

 According to Intersociety, families in parts of the Southeast have increasingly discouraged their children, particularly the males aged 18 and above, from joining security services due to fears of alleged targeting, disappearance, or discriminatory treatment.

 It also said some serving officers from the region had previously resigned under what it described as pressure and security fears.

 The group listed all eight reasons to include: alleged historical killings and disappearances of civilians during the Boko Haram insurgency in Northern Nigeria; accusations of internal conspiracies and insecurity faced by South-east officers within the military; and alleged mass casualties and destruction of property during security operations in the Southeast between 2015 and 2017.