Opeyemi Olamilekan
A Nigerian military commander, Brigadier General M.A. Sadiq of 3 Brigade Kano State has been reportedly detained in a military police guardroom in the capital Abuja for allegedly diverting rice palliatives, and selling military equipment, including generator sets and operational vehicles.
The Nigerian Defence Headquarters (DHQ) reportedly gave the rice to the brigades nationwide for distribution to soldiers as a palliative but General Sadiq allegedly refused to share it with his men in Kano State.
The embattled general was accused of stealing many official equipment belonging to the military, including a MIKANO heavy-duty generator, at Military Training Camp, Falgore, Kano and sold them to metal scrap dealers.
Based on these allegations, General Sadiq has been replaced by Brigadier General A.M. Tukur, a former registrar of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), according to local news outlet Daily Nigerian.
“Following these allegations, Brigadier General Sadiq has been detained in the guardroom and is facing interrogation by the special investigation branch of military police in Abuja,” the news outlet quoted a source as saying.
“He was first invited to Abuja for questioning, and immediately ordered to be locked in the military police guardroom. There are mounting allegations against him.
“Already Brigadier General A.M. Tukur, who previously served as the Registrar of the Nigerian Defence Academy, NDA, has been appointed to take charge of the brigade.
“Full scale investigations into the matter are ongoing. He will likely face charges at the court-martial.”
The DHQ could not be reached for comment.