The Nigerian Army says it will replicate the template it adopted for its officers in the just concluded governorship election in Anambra in subsequent polls in the country.
The General Officer Commanding (GOC) 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Maj.-Gen. Adamu Abubakar disclosed this on Tuesday in Enugu during a courtesy call on him by the Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Enugu State Council.
Abubakar said that the conducts of military men deployed to provide security for the Nov. 18 polls had been adjudged the best, adding that there had not been complaints from any quarter.
He said that their men discharged their duties in the most professional way and played by their rules of engagement.
“This is the first exercise we are embarking without blames and complaints from anywhere. Our soldiers were professionals and their conduct did not in any disrupt the election.
“The Anambra State template will be used in subsequent elections,” he said.
Abubakar said that the country was gradually adapting to democratic values, adding that the military would contribute its quota to sustain the system.
“The commendation should also go to other sister security agencies because it was the entire security outfit that did it,” he said.
He said that the situation could have been unpredictable had the military not been on top of the situation due to tensions in the area.
He said that the Exercise Python Dance II conducted in arear prior to the election was a precursor to the peaceful atmosphere witnessed during the polls.
“The tension was too high that nobody knew what would have happened and it paved the way for the peaceful election and this testifies that the army can come to the aide of civil authorities,” he said.
Abubakar commended the chapel for conducting a peaceful election which enthroned new leadership in the union.
He said that the Division would continue to collaborate with journalists in the state as they had symbiotic functions.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Correspondents Chapel, Mr. Emmanuel Nweze commended the GOC for the professional way their men deployed for governorship election in Anambra State discharged their duties.
Nweze also said that journalists in the state were not unmindful of the various achievements the Division had recorded under Abubakar, including the successful Exercise Python Dance II.
He applauded the Division for overcoming the over 20 year intractable water supply in the barracks through the construction of a water scheme in the barracks.
Nweze appealed for greater collaboration between the military and the press in the task of making the state safer.
Moses Oyediran, Enugu
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