Nigerian Army has said it did not force 486 Boko Haram suspects
arrested on their way from Jigawa to Port Harcourt on June 15, 2014, to
drink urine.
A Controller of the Nigerian Army Operation Centre, North East, Maj.
Chudi Aniukwu, said this in his testimony before the presidential
investigation panel on human right violations in Abuja.
He insisted that the suspects ate same food with the soldiers and
were kept for seven days for proper profiling by the Department of State
Services (DSS).
Aniukwu said only one out of the 486 suspects was identified by the DSS as a Boko Haram suspect.
He recalled that the suspects were moved to Abia headquarters of the
Army base, and the information was routed to the highest authority in
the Army and the DSS.
Aniukwu said what aroused suspicion was the huge number of movement
at a go and the volatile security situation in the country at the time.
He said after the investigation by the DSS, the driver of each
vehicle was given N22,000 to enable them return to their destinations.
However, one of the drivers, Suleiman Adamu, in his testimony, said
the passengers were going to Port Harcourt for greener pastures.
He added that they were held in custody for 12 days contrary to the Army’s claim that they were held only for seven days.
The chairman of the seven-man panel, Justice Biobele A. Georgewill
discharged the witnesses and said their complaints would be looked into
and recommendations submitted to President Muhammadu Buhari.