The Nigerian Army has addressed the recent unrest involving soldiers and civilians at Banex Plaza in the Wuse area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. The incident, which occurred on Saturday, May 18, 2024, led to the temporary closure of the plaza to investigate the “cruel treatment” of unarmed soldiers by some individuals at the trade plaza.
In a statement on Tuesday, Army spokesman Major General Onyema Nwachukwu condemned the attack on the soldiers, describing it as “entirely unwarranted and unjustifiable.”
Following the incident, the Army convened a meeting with the management of Banex Plaza to identify and apprehend the perpetrators of the assault. This led to the temporary shutdown of activities at the plaza to ensure the security of the Federal Capital Territory and apprehend hoodlums who have been using the Banex neighborhood as a sanctuary.
“This is in furtherance of the need for extensive investigation to be conducted at the scene to determine both the immediate and underlying causes of this mayhem. This investigation ultimately aims at ensuring the security of the Federal Capital Territory and to prevent such unwarranted attacks on our personnel and other security operatives, as has been observed in other areas, such as the unfortunate attack in Okuama,” the statement read.
The Army condemned the attack on its personnel and urged the public to exercise caution and restraint when dealing with military personnel and other security operatives. They encouraged Nigerians to use official channels to report grievances or misconduct by military personnel.
