Nigerian Army Dismisses Soldier Aaron Abraham, Who Was Detained and Questioned for Preaching About Jesus in Service Uniform.
Calabar, Cross River State — In a recent development, the Nigerian Army has officially dismissed Lance Corporal Musa Adamu, a soldier attached to the Amphibious Training School Personnel (ATSCalabar) unit in Calabar, Cross River State. The dismissal comes after he preached about Jesus Christ while donning his service uniform on social media.
Previously, SaharaReporters had reported that Adamu had been detained by army authorities for over 50 days. His salary had also been withheld for seven months leading up to his dismissal.
Contrary to initial reports that suggested religious reasons for his detention, Director Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu clarified that Adamu was held for violating certain provisions of the Armed Forces Act and not for religious activities.
During the operation, he was found preaching in uniform on a social media platform in violation of extant Social Media policy for the Armed Forces of Nigeria. This prompted his invitation for interrogation by relevant authorities. Rather than present himself for the investigation, he absconded for about six and a half months, resulting in the declaration of the soldier on Absence Without Official Leave (AWOL).
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The action of the personnel violates Section 58 (a) (b) Obstruction of Provost Officers and Section 59 (a) (b) Absence Without Leave,” stated Brigadier General Nwachukwu.
In a video circulating on social media, Lance Corporal Adamu, who goes by the Facebook name “Aaron Abraham,” admitted to his dismissal and the charges brought against him. He said, “By the grace of God, I have been dismissed by the Nigerian Army. I was given three charges; the first, using the uniform to preach on social media. The second, knowing fully well that using the uniform to preach is an offence and I went ahead to do it, which is disobedience to a particular order.”
The soldier’s case has garnered attention as it’s reported that he recently converted to Christianity despite being born a Muslim. His preaching on social media, while in uniform, drew both support and criticism.
It’s worth noting that this incident isn’t the first of its kind involving uniformed personnel preaching in Nigeria. In 2019, a video of a police officer preaching in his service uniform also went viral, sparking discussions on the role of religious expression within uniformed services.
Adamu’s case highlights the complexities surrounding religious expression and the enforcement of regulations within the Nigerian military.
Source: SaharaReporters
