Soldiers protest overcrowded detention facility, poor feeding in Sokoto barracks

The Nigerian Army has promised to investigate alleged overcrowding at its detention facility in a Sokoto division.

On Friday, a video clip surfaced online showing soldiers lamenting overcrowding, poor feeding, poor sanitation, and poor ventilation at the 8-division Garrison detention facility in the state.

The video showed a horde of soldiers purportedly awaiting trial, lying on the bare floor in the most unsanitary conditions imaginable.

The narrator in the four-minute video said over 100 soldiers are in the facility.

Reacting to the viral clip, Onyema Nwachukwu, director of army public relations, said Taoreed Lagbaja, chief of army staff (COAS), has instituted an investigation into the incident to determine whether it is an isolated or widespread situation. 

He said while the army regrets the situation at the detention camp, it will not fail to sanction the soldiers involved for their “unruly behaviour”.

“Undoubtedly, the Sokoto barracks detention facility incident is quite unfortunate and an embarrassment to the sound administration efforts of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), to say the least,” the statement reads. 

“And in line with his leadership style, the COAS has instituted an appropriate investigation into the incident to determine whether it is an isolated or widespread situation in similar detention facilities.

“While the service regrets and has gleaned some lessons from the incident, it will, however, not condone the manner the inmates expressed their purported grievance.

“Mutiny and conduct prejudicial to service order are grievous misconducts, and this very incident epitomises such. 

“As such, as Army, on the one side, goes ahead to implement the COAS directive to look into the state of all NA detention facilities, as detainees’ lives also matter, the Service shall not shy away from appropriately sanctioning the soldiers involved in the unruly behaviour in its Sokoto detention facility for failing to exhaust all available options to channel their complaints to the appropriate authorities.

“And if it was discovered they did and nothing was done, necessary administrative actions will be taken against anyone found to have failed to discharge his/her duties effectively.”