By Gabriel Ameh, The Sight News
The Nigerian Army on Tuesday dismissed as baseless a report in the media, claiming that it has introduced an automatic promotion initiative for personnel who have served in their current ranks for five years or more.
This is just as the Nigerian Army urged the personnel to disregard the report, describing it as not only baseless but also misleading and untrue.
The Director, Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu in a statement issued in Abuja noted that; “The Nigerian Army (NA) has been notified of misleading and baseless claims currently circulating the social media, insinuating that the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede has introduced an automatic promotion initiative for personnel who have served in their current ranks for five years or more.
“This deliberate misinformation is not only untrue but also calculated to mislead personnel as well as members of the public”.
The army spokesman continues, “Suffice to state that promotion in the Nigerian Army is a structured, merit-based exercise governed by clearly defined statutory regulations and provisions. It is neither arbitrary nor subject to social media speculations.
“The conditions for elevation in rank are meticulously outlined in the Nigerian Army Administrative Policies and Procedures (Revised 2023) and the Armed Forces of Nigeria Harmonized Terms and Conditions of Service for Soldiers, Ratings and Airmen (2024). Among others, key requirements for promotion by the Armed Forces include but are not limited to serving the stipulated minimum period on a substantive rank, successful completion of requisite professional courses, maintaining satisfactory disciplinary and performance record and meeting medical and physical fitness standards.
“It must be emphasized that the Nigerian Army, like other Services of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, adheres to unified standards of promotion criteria. The Nigerian Army will, therefore, not deviate from these established protocols, which ensure fairness, professionalism, and operational effectiveness across the services”, he said.
Concluding the statement titled: ‘Discountenance False Claims of Landmark Promotion Initiative in the Nigerian Army’, Nwachukwu said, “The public is thus urged to disregard the deceptive publication, as it by no means holds any credibility.
“The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, remains resolute in his commitment to the welfare, career progression, and professional development of Nigerian Army personnel, as encapsulated in his “Soldier First” mantra, but will not act in a manner that will insidiously undermine due process and international best practice”.
