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| Nigerian Army |
The Nigerian
Army has warned its officers and men engaged in internal security coordination
with the Nigeria Police Force to be alive to their responsibilities of adequate
protection of lives and property and desist from taking sides.
It warned that
officers found taking sides in any internal insurrection or failing to perform
their responsibility as expected would face the consequences of their actions.
In a reminder
of the Nigerian Army Rule of Engagement (ROE) for Internal Security Operations
(Operation Mesa) obtained by PRNigeria from the Acting Director of Army Public
Relations, Col Sani Usman, the force frowned against “the observed short
comings especially negligence and outright ignorance displayed by troops
deployed for Operation MESA and other Internal Security (IS) Operations.”
“For the
avoidance of doubt, the ROE and Code of Conduct set out the circumstances and
limitations, under which armed force may be applied to achieve military
objectives in furtherance of government policy within Operation MESA and other
IS Operations.”
“Any officer
or soldier found aiding or abetting any act of arson, vandalism or
unprofessional conduct, would be severely dealt with according to the extant
laws.”
Once deployed
on any internal security (IS) operation, Usman said “it is the duty of an
officer or soldier to ensure the enforcement of law and order in conjunction
with other security agencies.”
He reminded
troops that they are duty bound to intervene in any situation to avoid a
breakdown in peace, stability or law and order of an area where they are
deployed.
“It is
inexcusable for troops to stand aside and watch the security situation
deteriorate leading to loss of lives or damage to property without intervening.
Such intervention should, however, be based strictly on sound judgement and
within the ambit of the code of conduct for IS Operations while exhibiting good
professional ethics”, he added.
Citing Sect
217 (2) (c) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which provides that the
Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) shall suppress insurrection and act in aid of
civil authority to restore order when called upon to do so by the President,
Commander-in-Chief reinforced by Sect (8) (1) and (3) of the Armed Forces Act,
Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, (LFN) 2004, the Army declares “this
presupposes that troops have to use necessary force to quell crisis resulting
in deaths, injury and damages to properties”.
Other
highlights of the ROE include:
Principle of
minimum force and proportionality must be applied at all times; whenever
operational situation permits, every reasonable effort shall be made to control
the situation through measures short of using force, including personal contact
and negotiations; the use of lethal force shall only be resorted to if all
other means to control the situation have failed or in case of unexpected
attack or suspected Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack during which a
delay could lead to loss of life or serious injury to personnel; and that any
force applied must be limited in its intensity and duration; it must also be
commensurate with the level of threat posed.
Others are
that: force shall be used only when absolutely necessary to achieve an
immediate aim; the decision to open fire shall be made only on orders and under
the control of on-scene commander, unless there is insufficient time to obtain
such order. Fire can however be opened if the life of a soldier, any law
abiding member of the public and/or property of which it is our duty to protect
is in grave danger; fire must be aimed and controlled. Indiscriminate firing is
not permitted.
Also: Fire may
be opened to forcefully stop any vehicle that fails to stop at a checkpoint or
road block when ordered to stop for search; automatic fire will only be opened
as a last resort; avoid collateral damage; after fire has ceased, render
medical assistance and record details of incident both in writing and using
audio/visual equipment whether or not casualty has been recorded; and whenever
in doubt, seek clarification from higher headquarters.
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