‘Army has not made arrests over alleged plans to heat up polity’

• Group cautions Junaid over inciting comments
Two days after the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai raised the alarm that some politicians were approaching some soldiers for undisclosed political reasons, the Nigerian Army has said it was yet to arrest any persons or group of persons in connection with the alleged plot.

This is coming came amidst claims by Transparency International that the Nigerian military was soiled in corruption at the moment, insisting that the development was weakening the country’s counter-insurgency operations in the North East.

Responding to enquiry on whether the Army has arrested any individuals or whether its officers were romancing politicians for undisclosed reasons as alleged by its boss, the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig. Gen. Sani Usman said the military had not made any arrests.

“We have always been open and transparent with information. If there is anything, we will let members of the public know,” he said through short message services (SMS) on his mobile telephone.

He therefore, warned Army personnel to steer clear of politics, adding that those interested in politics should resign and pursue their ambition.

Responding to the development, the Chief of the Air Staff (COAS), Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar said that the Nigerian Air Force would continue to remain loyal to Nigeria and to the service.

He commended the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government for the support it has extended to the service and assured that the service would remain loyal to the country.

Meanwhile, the Guardian of Democracy Movement (GDM) has warned elder statesman and ex-lawmaker, Junaid Mohammed against making inciting comments that could cause a breach of the peace in the country.

The pro-democracy group warned him to mind any utterances that could lead to a military coup.

Muhammed had said that if anything happens to President Buhari, the North would insist on having another two terms in the presidency by 2019.

“The zoning arrangement of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has not worked. Now it is trending in the All Progressives Congress (APC). It is either we fix it or ship it out altogether. If that is not done, then you have to go back and address it by saying that in the course of zoning and rotation, Umaru Yar’Adua died in office,” he stated.

But National Coordinator of the group, Sabo Odeh said in Abuja yesterday that Mohammed’s criticisms of the Buhari administration have become so commonplace that people were no longer moved.

His words: “We like to set it out clearly that we decided to speak early enough, which some people may consider hasty or premature, but we know that our country’s situation require us to be proactive. Things must not be allowed to degenerate beyond repair before we intervene.”