Ex-soldier sentenced to death for mutiny opens up

One of the 54 soldiers sentenced to death for mutiny by the Nigerian military authorities in 2014, Amoo Bukolan has opened up on his ordeals at the hands of the Nigerian military which he served diligently.

Bukola who was recently released from the Maximum Security Prisons, Kirikiri, Apapa, Lagos, said he was tortured and jailed for demanding better weapons to fight against terrorists.

He said his ordeal began alongside 117 other soldiers from the Army Headquarters Special Force Company when they were deployed to several places like Bulaburi Damboa, Bulaburi garna, Mafindi, Balle, Chinese, Ngwoshe, Gwosa, Cashew Plantation at the back of How’s barracks, Asigashia Cameroon, and Mulai primary school along Damboa Road, adjacent AIT, Maiduguri, Borno State.

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“On the 9th of July, 2014 our mission on this day was to recapture Damboa from the terrorists, on our way to the point along the road, the terrorists had laid ambush unknown to us, at that point, we lost nine men and twenty-three were seriously injured.

“To further commence the journey, we requested sufficient weapons from our commander so as to be able to fight more sufficiently with the terrorists but our request was refused by the commander.

“On the 4th of August 2014, we were asked to return back to Damboa, at this point again we were ambushed again, yet again we requested weapons from our commander and he still refused.

“All of a sudden on the same day the GOC of 7 division in Maiduguri, Borno State, Major General M.Y Ibrahim ordered that we should be brought to him for an address, unfortunately his plan then was to hand us over to the military police guard room.

Bukola said he and his colleagues were charged with mutiny and criminal conspiracy to commit mutiny against 7 Division of the Nigerian Army in Maiduguri.

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“The court martial process started on the 2nd of October 2014 then a case was established against us in the court and adjourned severally before we were finally sentenced, but one (1) of us did not face the trials for health reasons, five (5) were discharged and acquitted while fifty-four (54) of us were sentenced to death by firing squad.

The death sentence was later commuted to 10 years imprisonment on the 18^th of December 2015, and then moved to the maximum-security prisons Kirikiri Apapa Lagos State.

Bukola said “This life is full of ups and downs. I never imagined that my wife, mother of my only child (Adam) would abandon me just after I was sentenced to death by firing squad to marry another man. Anyway, life continues. It sounded incredulous when our death sentence was reverted to 10years.

 “Now that we have been released, we beg President Mohammadu Buhari, Vice President Prof. Yemi Oshibajo, the Chief of army staff to reinstate us in the army so that we can fight the terrorists”.