The Nigerian Army is investigating the alleged killing of a watermelon seller by a soldier in Zamfara State. The deceased was said to have asked the personnel to pay for the good he bought. The Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Yerima, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday in Abuja.

Yerima said that the incident was quite regrettable, adding that the Nigerian army condoles with the family of the deceased. He said that the General Officer Commanding 8 Division, Maj.-Gen. Usman Yusuf, had since commissioned a panel to unravel the circumstances that led to the altercations which eventually claimed one life. According to him, efforts are ongoing to arrest the yet-to-be-identified perpetrator.

The army spokesman said that no military operational vehicle was set ablaze as claimed in a report surrounding the incident He said that the Nigerian army remained professional and would never condone any act of misconduct by troops against the “very people they are deployed to protect’’.

According to him, the alleged perpetrator once identified, will be subjected to a thorough investigation and if found wanting, will be made to face the full wrath of the law in accordance with extant provisions.

“Furthermore, the army wishes to assure the good people of Zamfara state that normalcy has been restored in the general area and remains committed in the discharge of its constitutional responsibilities. The army is also working to put in place measures to ensure that such incident never occurs again,” he said.

However, nothing has been heard from the Army headquarters of similar shooting incidents in the Southeast. For instance, a university student was allegedly shot by soldiers on guard in front of the Government House, Owerri and a first class university graduate was also published in the Face book for being killed by soldiers who tortured him to death.

Source: Drumnewsonline with reports from The Punch